1 in 4 CT Families With Children Are Single-Parent Families

As schools re-open and workers are returning to their offices, the impact of conflicting schedules and competing priorities may be felt most acutely in single-parent families with children under 18. The Connecticut Data Collaborative analyzed U.S. Census data to provide a snapshot of single-parent families who may be facing these challenges in the state’s largest communities (Bridgeport, Hartford, New Haven, Stamford, Waterbury).

According to U.S. Census data, approximately 1 in 4 Connecticut families (26%) with children under 18 is a single-parent family. This rate is slightly higher than the national average, where almost a quarter of U.S. children under the age of 18 live with one parent and no other adults (23%), according to a Pew Center study done in 2019. More than 11 million families in the U.S. were headed by single parents in 2019, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

In two of Connecticut’s five largest cities, more than half of families living in the community are single-parent families. Single-parent householders often do not have the flexibility to work around competing priorities, particularly those who have children under 18 attending elementary, middle, or high school. As schools remain remote or only partially open, this puts tremendous strain on working families.

Statewide in Connecticut, 76% of single-parent householders are in the labor force, and many may be trying to structure their employment around school hours. When looking at married couples, the balance of work and remote learning can also pose a challenge for the approximately 57% of Connecticut households where both parents are in the labor force.

“The continuing safety precautions in response to COVID-19 presents numerous challenges for all families in Connecticut, but for single-parent families the start of the school year, with children on different schedules or learning from home rather than in school at least part of the time, pose significant challenges for many in the labor force,” said Michelle Riordan-Nold, Executive Director of the Connecticut Data Collaborative (CT Data). “This challenge will be particularly acute for our larger municipalities, where there is a higher percentage of single parent households in the labor force.”

The data on single-parent families is included in the Connecticut Data Collaborative’s Connecticut County Data Stories, which highlights key demographic and economic data in each of the state’s eight counties and, in some data categories, the state’s 169 municipalities as well. Included is comparison data on population (by age and race), median household income, labor force, school enrollment, and housing. Data sources include the American Community Survey 2018 5-year estimates, published by the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Connecticut Data Collaborative (CTData) is a statewide public-private partnership that advocates for the public availability of open and accessible data. CTData strives for informed decision-making across Connecticut, empowering an ecosystem of data users by democratizing access to public data and building data literacy skills.

CTData creates interactive data portals, platforms, and stories for users to explore; teaches data skills through workshops offered by the CTData Academy; consults with organizations on their specific data needs; and supports a community of data users through events and conferences. CTData is also the lead organization for the State of Connecticut in the U.S. Census Bureau’s State Data Center Program, and recently was recognized by the Connecticut Entrepreneur Awards in the Education category.

More than 200 data sets are now accessible to the public on the CTData website, including a wide array of subjects and policy categories. More information is available at www.ctdata.org