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Highest number children you know someone to have in real life?

429 replies

Newsenmum · 22/10/2026 20:10

People talk about these crazy massive families that exist on news but what is the largest family you know? Im from quite a middle class area down south. Most families I know have one or two kids, sometimes three. I have one friend pregnant with her fourth and know one school mum with five! Very unusual though.

OP posts:
PollyDarton1 · 22/10/2026 22:40

My Mum is one of 3 which isn’t super remarkable, and my paternal grandfather was one of 4 (but one died in childhood, 1930s).

I have two friends who have 4 kids each, one of them had her first at 17 and her last at 40! I know casually someone who has 5.

Most of DSs friends have one or two siblings - he’s the outlier in that he’s an only child.

ThatHangryRubyReader · 22/10/2026 22:40

I know a mum about to have her 16th child. All same dad and same mum. Very happy family.

DiscombobulatedHedgehog · 22/10/2026 22:38

I have six. I knew a woman down south who had fifteen. I rarely meet anyone with four or more.

CherryKerry · 22/10/2026 22:37

Girl I went to school with (our Mums are friends) has at least 8 with around a 25 year age gap, started at 15 and still going strong at 40!

She had immense support from her Mum with the first few as she was very young and still wanted to party but her Mum said no more financial subsidy and endless babysitting after 4 as she was getting too old for it.

It all went very wrong after that, kids being left alone, charged with neglect , dog shit all over the house and named in our local media etc. Kids were taking into care, some sent off to various family members of their Dads etc. The younger ones produced afterwards have a high level of social work supervision.

Gravygranules · 22/10/2026 22:36

I know 1 family with 7, 2 families with 6 and 2 with 5. One of the 5 kid families has all boys.

I can just about manage two DC.

Alltheusefulitems · 22/10/2026 22:34

Right now the biggest family I know is mine, I have 5. When I knew a lot more mums I had 2 friends each with 6 and a classmate of my eldest son was one of 13!

Tahlbias · 22/10/2026 22:34

Newsenmum · 22/10/2026 20:10

People talk about these crazy massive families that exist on news but what is the largest family you know? Im from quite a middle class area down south. Most families I know have one or two kids, sometimes three. I have one friend pregnant with her fourth and know one school mum with five! Very unusual though.

My husband is 1 of 8 🤷

Kevinbaconsrealwife · 22/10/2026 22:34

ThunderingAlpaca72 · 22/10/2026 20:13

a friend just had her 5th

My boss just had her 5th as well ..x

SuitcaseAndSecrets · 22/10/2026 22:34

I'm 68 so know loads of peers who grew up in large families.. l am one of five sisters.. but in my school years loads came from families of 8/9/10 my friend is one of 13 but she's a Mormon and has 6 kids of her own.

ToWhitToWhoo · 22/10/2026 22:33

I recently met a child (about 10) who was one of the youngest of 12 children.

I have met an adult (would now be in her 60s) who was one of 14 children.

ThreeLocusts · 22/10/2026 22:33

dead or alive? My grandfather had 11 kids with two wives (first one died of TB after child nr 6). He really should have stopped earlier - his youngest was born when he was sixty, with a club foot, and developed a roaring psychosis in adolescence.

Guidanceplease20 · 22/10/2026 22:32

I know a 4. Although my son is friends with a local lad who I think has 5 siblings. Im pretty sure his parents have bern married for forever, so I dont think they are steps, but cant be sure.

So I definitely know a 4 and may know a 6.

Cantbelieveshesaidthat123 · 22/10/2026 22:31

ThreeLeggedCat · 22/10/2026 20:14

I have one friend with 10 kids and another with 7.

Came here to say exactly this, I know 2 women with 10 and 7.

MyGirlJ · 22/10/2026 22:31

A family member has 11 children. She's in her 40s. Her eldest is mid-twenties and her youngest is roughly one year old.

BertieBotts · 22/10/2026 22:30

5 is the biggest - I knew 2 families with 5. One the DC are all grown up now and the other they will be teenagers, we lost touch after I moved away. Both involve blended families, one adoption.

4 are the biggest families I know where they all have the same parents. I think I know 4 families with 4 children?

TBH I am one of four but I have never lived with 2 of my half-siblings so it doesn't really count from that angle. DH also one of four but his siblings are much older.

PyongyangKipperbang · 22/10/2026 22:30

I have six.

ohreallyIsee · 22/10/2026 22:27

I know one with five(the last pregnancy was unplanned and twins!) and a couple with six

MondeoFan · 22/10/2026 22:27

South East and know a family of 7. Very unusual though. I have 2 myself with a 9 year gap. I really didn’t want to leave my only DD without a sibling. I know loads with only 1 child and they are done so now I think what was I worried about

Lomonald · 22/10/2026 22:23

I used to work with families and young children, some of them had lots of children, one dad had 13 maybe 14 children to different women. It wasn't unusual to have 6 children in one family though.

silversmith · 22/10/2026 22:22

My primary school best friend was the youngest of 8. Very middle class family - dad a senior civil servant, mum a nurse. The mum just loved babies, and when she couldn’t have any more of her own she continued to foster. Always a line full of nappies!

A current colleague of mine has 7.

scoopsahoooy · 22/10/2026 22:20

I used to work with a man who had 10. It absolutely blew my mind - unless he was working in an extremely stressful and unglamorous job for fun they weren't mega well off, either.

Robogob · 22/10/2026 22:20

I have a friend who has seven children. Oldest is 17.

Elfie23 · 22/10/2026 22:19

My mum is one of 11 children and my dad is one of 6. I have a LOT of cousins! 😂
Im 39 and one of 3 children. I have just the 1 myself

TubeScreamer · 22/10/2026 22:18

Sister in law - 4

Electricsausages · 22/10/2026 22:17

Daughter of a friend has 10