In advance of George Osbourne’s Autumn Statement, in which it is expected that the chancellor will say the economy is recovering, Gingerbread has stated that single parents surveyed for their upcoming report say they believe their financial situation will worsen over the next year.

The survey was conducted as part of the report, Paying the Price: single parents in the age of austerity, due to be released next month. Paying the Price looks at how single parents are faring light of austerity cuts and rising living costs. Around a third (36 per cent) of their outgoings go on housing, food and fuel essentials as opposed to around a quarter (27 per cent) of couple families’ spending. Rising living cost have also impacted on single parents’ food expenditure with two-thirds of the parents saying they had cut back on food for themselves, and one in seven (14 per cent) said they had cut back on food for their children.

In responses these findings, Gingerbread chief executive Fiona Weir states, “Single parents aren’t feeling any warmth from an economy that is supposedly heating up. In fact, the majority expect things to get worse. At this time of year, parents with growing children need to buy new shoes and winter coats – but for too many this is becoming impossible.”