Staying home and getting on: Tackling the challenges facing low to middle income families where young adults live with their parents

This is the final report from a project which aims to investigate the economic and financial challenges facing low to middle income families where young adults live with their parents. It is set in the context of the growing proportion of young people in the UK living with their parents – two in three single people aged 20-34 (without children), which is over 3.5 million young people – making it more of a life stage than stop gap. The research focusses on the experiences of low to middle income families in this situation who have received less attention amid the stereotypical view of young adults being helped by the ‘bank of mum and dad’.

Living with parents is a source of support in the context of instability, insecurity and housing constraint for young adults. Over the long term, there is a need to improve housing and employment opportunities for this group. But this report looks at how households are responding to current structures, and at how they can be best supported in doing so.

The research covered in this report involved two phases. The first comprised 36 interviews in late 2020/early 2021 with young adults (age 20-34) and parents in low to middle income households to explore their experiences and needs. This included influences behind their living arrangements, the financial, practical and social implications of living together, in current circumstances and for the future. This was followed by consultation with stakeholder organisations and focus groups with young adults and parents to explore policy and practice responses that could help to address the needs of families and potentially better support young adults and parents.