Gender
Of the 254 participants in the 2014 ER Survey, 70.5% were
female, an increase from the 2010 survey (66.5%). There
were also significantly more women with dependent
children (50.7%) compared to men (18.8%) and women
represented a staggering 86.7% of all single-headed families
with dependent children. These figures not only illustrate
the greater burden local women shoulder in the raising of
children under seemingly increasing financial stress, but
also point to a reduced capacity for women to balance childrearing responsibilities with seeking work as a pathway to
financial resilience and self-reliance.
Gender
Female
Proportion of respondents who were female
Women in caring roles and with dependent children are
disproportionally overrepresented within WCC’s ER services
regardless of their income source. Women respondents
represented a 100% of all Single Parenting Payment
recipients, 92% of all Carer Allowance recipients and 68.8%
of all Newstart Allowance recipients.
Clearly women, particularly those with dependents, are
finding the welfare safety-net inadequate. In 2012, the
government introduced changes to the Single Parenting
Payment which involved transitioning parents to Newstart
allowance once the youngest child turns 8. This has left
many single parent households worse off by between $60
and $80 per week, pushing many families deeper into r
financial hardship.
The impact on families has been significant with survey
respondents indicating they could not afford to meet many
of the basic elements of life for their children. For those
survey respondents who had children, 42.3% indicated they
could not provide access for their child/ren to a hobby or
leisure out of school activity simply because they could not
afford it (93.7%). Over a quarter of respondents also
indicated their chi ldren did not have yearly dental check-ups
(30.2%), their children did not have up to date schoolbooks
and school clothes (28.2%), could not participate in school
activities and outings (27.5%) and they could not provide a
separate bedroom for each child over the age of 10 (26.2%).
In particular, single parents with children were most likely to
report not being able to provide their child/ren with access
to these activities/items.
Age
Most respondents were aged between 26-45 (61%) years of
age, an increase of 11% since 2010.
100%
92%
PPS
Carer
68.8%
%
Female
NSA
Male
42.3% Could not afford a hobby or leisure
activity for their children
30.2% Could not afford early dental check
ups
28.2% No up to date school clothes/books
27.5% Could not participate in school
activities or outings
26.2% No separate bedroom for children
over 10 years of age
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