We believe in an Ireland where every family and child is respected and cherished equally.
We have been working with one-parent families for over 50 years. We provide a range of direct services to parents and children, along with campaigning and advocating for legislative and social change to deliver true equality for all families.
We provide a range of direct supports for parents who are parenting alone, sharing parenting or parenting through separation.
We provide specialist, professional training and development for those who work with one-parent families.
We provide a variety of non-judgement, confidential counselling services for those dealing with an unplanned or crisis pregnancy and for those parenting alone or sharing parenting.
One Family are leaders in a child-centred, best-practice approach for those parenting alone, sharing parenting or parenting through separation. We have hundreds of advice articles to offer support and guidance when dealing with specific issues.
We run Ireland’s only employability programme, New Futures, uniquely designed for lone parents who wish to return to education or work but are not sure where to start.
Due to societal and structural inequalities, one-parent families are more vulnerable to poverty, family homelessness and deprivation.
We campaign on a variety of issues impacting one-parent families, including income inequality, child poverty, family law reform and more.
If you have a media request, please contact Vicky Masterson on 083 443 3705. If you are a parent who would like to join our media panel, please email Vicky at vmasterson@onefamily.ie If you wish to receive our press releases, please sign up to our media mailing list.
Simon Harris said “work must always pay”, but this approach doesn’t extend to lone parents One Family responds to Budget 2027 For immediate release – Tuesday 7th October 2026 One Family says of the €7 billion+ in new spending in Budget 2027, very little will get to the families who need it most. While there […]
One Family Annual Report highlights impact of housing crisis and rising poverty on one-parent families Urgent government action needed in Budget 2027 For immediate release – Tuesday 22nd September 2026 One Family today launched their 2025 Annual Report and said the housing crisis is creating a “cascading, devastating impact” on one-parent families, with children most affected. […]
New National Survey To Help Schools Support Parental Separation & Family Change Survey by One Family, The Separation Network and WHAT WORKS (Department of Children, Disability and Equality) 6th July 2026 – for immediate release Parents and teachers across Ireland are being asked to complete a new, national survey which will be used to develop […]
Government must prioritise targeted measures for children in one-parent families in Budget 2027 One Family launch Pre-Budget Submission 30th June 2026 – For immediate release One Family today launched their Pre-Budget Submission 2027, calling for urgent government action to tackle increasing inequalities for one-parent families. Featuring the lived experience of lone parents from One Family’s […]
One Family’s New Futures Employability Programme at risk of closure due to lack of government funding For immediate release – Tuesday 12th May One Family’s employability programme, New Futures, is at imminent risk of closure due to a lack of government funding. The Class of 2026 will graduate from the programme in Dublin today and without urgent […]
One Family briefs TDs on crises impacting one-parent families and urge them to “Get It Right” 26th March 2026 One Family will brief TDs and policymakers in the AV Room at Leinster House today about critical issues impacting one-parent families across Ireland. Urgent political action is needed on issues including family law reform, child poverty, […]
21st March 2026 To mark International Single Parents Day, One Family have launched their #GetItRight campaign, calling for urgent government action on family law, child poverty, family homelessness and access to education for one-parent families across Ireland. If Government gets services, policies and legislation right for one-parent families, then they will be right for all families in Ireland. We’re calling on government to: Invest in out-of-court supports: Not only would this address lengthy court waiting times, but it […]
One Family Statement: Energy Crisis 10th March 2026 We are deeply concerned at the rapid rise in energy prices as a result of the war in Iran. One-parent families are still experiencing the impacts of inflation rises and the cost-of-living crisis triggered by the war in Ukraine in 2022. 46% of one-parent families are living […]
For immediate release – Monday 20th October Lone parents are prevented from equally accessing higher education, due to systemic barriers and insufficient financial supports, thereby negatively impacting on their long-term employment. “Education first? Lone parents’ lived experience of the challenges and benefits of participating in Higher Education” by Dr Fiona Dukelow (UCC), Dr Margaret […]
Tuesday 7th October 2025 For immediate release One Family welcomes the announcement of some evidence-based, targeted measures in Budget 2026, but highlights missed opportunities from government to deliver all actions needed to tackle child poverty and family homelessness. Strategic increases to the Child Support Payment and expansion of Fuel Allowance to those in receipt of the […]
Lone parents from One Family’s Advocacy Project highlighted multiple, intersecting barriers that are negatively contributing to child poverty and well-being. Housing, childcare and access to social welfare payments were all highlighted by parents as critical issues that need urgent action if child poverty levels are to be reduced. “I’m a working-class single parent and I really feel we are completely forgotten about” – Shauna*, lone parent of […]
75% of programme graduates progress into further education or employment For immediate release – Wednesday 20th August 2025 One Family, Ireland’s national organisation for people parenting alone, sharing parenting, and separating is looking for lone parents across Ireland who want to take the first step to change their life. The next term of New Futures is starting in September 2025 and One Family are looking […]
One Family and Treoir backed FLAC’s call for the Bereaved Partner’s Pension Bill 2025 to be amended to delete its proposals to remove the entitlement of people who are divorced or separated to a survivors’ pensions if their former partner dies (such entitlement has been in place for almost 20 years). Collectively, we are strongly […]
The National One Parent Family Alliance (NOPFA) has outlined essential actions government must take to address child poverty and the high deprivation levels experienced by one-parent families in Budget 2026. With one-parent families continuing to experience disproportionate rates of poverty and social exclusion, NOPFA’s budget asks are practical, evidence-based solutions to improve financial stability […]
One Family, Ireland’s national organisation for one-parent families, has warned the rise in poverty rates in lone-parent families show Government policies designed to tackle poverty are failing. The warning comes as the latest Survey on Income and Living Conditions 2024 confirms a pattern of consistent deprivation in one-parent families, rising to 46.3%. Once again, in 2024, the CSO Survey identified single-adult households with children under 18, as the most impacted families in Ireland.
One Family, Ireland’s national organisation for one-parent families, has warned the rise in poverty rates in lone-parent families show Government policies designed to tackle poverty are failing. The warning comes as the latest Survey on Income and Living Conditions 2024 confirms a pattern of consistent deprivation in one-parent families, rising to 46.3%. Once again, in 2024, the CSO Survey identified single-adult households with children under 18, as the most impacted families in Ireland.
