‘Unmarried parents no hindrance to children’

Children do not fare any worse in life if their parents are unmarried — their outcomes are much more influenced by their mother’s educational and employment background.

The research — carried out at the University of Limerick using data from the Growing Up in Ireland project — found that children of married and unmarried parents will develop similarly when their mothers are similarly educated and have equal and ready access to resources for her children.

Published yesterday by the Family Support Agency, the research also found that children’s educational outcomes, and particularly their maths grades, improved substantially when their mother’s came from a more “privileged” socio- economic background.