raising a family 'put on Hold' in crisis

One in five people claims to have been forced to put off having children because they cannot find an affordable place to live, research showed today.

About 18 per cent of people aged 18-44 said they actively delayed starting a family because of high housing costs, according to housing charity Shelter. The proportion of people who are putting off having children soars to 24 per cent among those aged 18-34. A fifth of people said they had put plans to have children on hold for up to six years because of high housing costs, while 37 per cent did not think they would be able to start a family for at least another four years.

Kay Boycott, director of policy and campaigns at Shelter, said: “These figures show just how pervasive the housing crisis is.”