Future Melbourne: How our families will change in 2029

IN the future, families will be less likely to contain mum, dad and two kids. In fact, by the year 2029, there will be more couples without kids than couples with children, data shows.

A true family of the future: Shona Glebatsas, Anthony McDonough, Jane Hope, Chris Glebatsas, Grace McDonough and dog Spartacus. Picture: Tony Gough

IN the future, families will be less likely to contain mum, dad and two kids.

In fact, by the year 2029, there will be more couples without kids than couples with kids, Australian Bureau of Statistics data shows.

Last year, 44 per cent of families were couples with children, down from 54 per cent in 1996, while 41 per cent of families were couples without kids, up from 35 per cent in 1996.

“But the number of couple families without children is projected to overtake the number of couple families with children and become the most common family type in Australia between 2023 and 2029,” ABS spokesman Stephen Collett said.

“This trend is driven by a number of factors, including age of the family members as well as decisions about delaying child-bearing or not having children.

“The idea of a traditional nuclear family has been changing for some time now.

“Trends in divorce and remarriage have contributed to more one-parent, step and blended families.”

There will be a growing number of such non-traditional families, which includes families headed by grandparents. Australian Institute of Family Studies data shows that in 2016, 43 per cent of children under the age of 13 lived in non-traditional households.

AIFS director Anne Hollonds said there was “greater social fluidity compared to 30 or 40 years ago”.

“But this doesn’t mean people will be any less likely to want to get married and have children,” she said.

“Their parents divorced in high numbers in the late 1970s when they were kids and they don’t want to end up that way. This means they are choosing more carefully.”

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South Yarra’s McDonough, Glebatsas and Hope family is proudly non-traditional.

When Lqd skincare owner Anthony McDonough, 48, separated from Jane Hope, 47, a decade ago, they continued to jointly raise daughter Grace, now 13.

Mr McDonough came out about 18 months later and his new partner, Chris Glebatsas, stepped up as a “second dad” to Grace. The family arerounded out by Great Dane Spartacus and Chris’ mother, Shona, who lives nearby.

“Jane and I are lucky everything has gone so well,” Mr McDonough said. “The beauty of it is that we’ve always put Grace first and that’s the bond we share”.

Mr Glebatsas said his family met Mr McDonough a decade ago at one of their regular “big fat Greek Christmases”.

“I had just come out to my whole family and so it made sense to bring Anthony and his ex-wife and their daughter to Christmas,” he said.

“It’s a new version of family, but it works for us.”

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