40% of families have only children - so where are they all?

[bobbybobbobbingalong]

Well that's the NZ figure - but where are all these only children? I know 2 (and Bob).

40% of families being one child families equates to only about 22% of children being from 1 child families (assuming say 40% two child families and 20% 3 child families) ? in my dd?s of 30 six year olds there are seven onlies ? that?s 23%.

If people ask why we have only one child I will usually say that 2 is too much work but I don?t mean it ? actually I would like to have had 2 but don?t want to go into the complex reasons why we chose to stick with 1 (and don?t want to advertise my age!).

Completely off topic... silverbirch are you Canadian?! Your chat name puts that song in my head "land of the silver birch home of the beaver..."

Hi Skerrismum,
No - not Canadian - the first two or three names
I tried to register were already taken and I looked out of the window for inspiration and
saw our silver birch tree...name sorted!

I can only think of one other person I know with 1 child & that was circumstantial, not choice. Not sure there is anyone else at dd's school yet I keep hearing it's more common. So where are they?

When I'm asked why I have only one I say cos I didn't want any more. Think that's quite clear.

ds1 is almost 6 in y1 and out fo 30 in his class, 10 i can think of are onlys, there may be more.

Haven't really thought about it before but a third of the class seems alot!!

Message withdrawn

i have 2, but even that seems a little low on MNet - everyone seems to have at least 3 here.

there is NO way we could ever afford to feed and house three, so this is it for us.

tbh, i'm not surprised by people having fewer children later in life here in the UK, this is a very, very expensive place to live.