Family

As much as we are taught not to value material possessions even the most non-indulgent people still have those one or two items we just couldn’t live without. Whether it’s a family heirloom, something our child gave to us or or the house itself, we all have prized possessions. This week the British public were quizzed by Skipton Building on what items they hold dear. The study shows people are more likely to cherish a possession which was given to...

Naming another living creature is a big responsibility. If you are a parent, your child will have to deal with his or her name, and whatever associations or nicknames it invites, for the rest of their life. For pet owners, the consequences of the name chosen are unlikely to be felt much by the animal, but, when choosing a name, you might want to think about whether you will be happy to shout it in the street in the unfortunate...

The upcoming weekend is the perfect time to spend more time with family and bring the changes into your usual Saturday or Sunday routine. Here is the list of fun family activities to do with your partner and kids — pick one or try them all to enjoy the most entertaining weekend of the season. 1.   Live Escape Game These live games have become pretty popular recently and there is a reason for it. Escape rooms like Escape Hour are...

A thrifty mum-of-three has garnered a legion of online followers after wowing friends with her healthy budget meals. Feeding a family of five and her dogs for just £38 a week, Danielle Ross has clocked up 22,000 followers on Facebook. The self-described "budget queen" is now saving hundreds of pounds a month. Mrs Ross, 30, is a spa host at a local spa and has three young sons and a 35-year-old husband, David. She said: "If I wasn't sticking to...

By Mark Herbert, Head of Schools Programmes at the British Council Mandarin Chinese, the world’s most popular first language, is the top non-European language that UK parents would like their children to study, a new survey has revealed. Amongst more than 1,000 UK adults with children aged under 18, over half said they believed that learning Mandarin Chinese would boost their children’s career prospects and open their minds to an ‘exciting and dynamic’ culture. And while Mandarin Chinese was still...

Tom and Caroline’s little boy had just turned four when the couple first started thinking about extending their family. Dominic had brought untold joy to their lives and both had embraced parenthood with gusto. As they considered their new addition, their thoughts increasingly turned to the possibility of welcoming their second child through adoption. Caroline said: “Parenthood does heighten your awareness of just how precious children are and we felt that if we wanted another child in our lives, this...

Cash-strapped Brits would prefer to pawn one of their own valuables - rather than borrow the money from someone they know, a new study revealed. Research by coupon site 360vouchercodes.co.uk showed a wide geographical variation in the UK's lending and borrowing habits. People in Scotland are the nicest to their friends with 20 per cent agreeing to lend a whooping £500 to someone in their social circle. People in the East Midlands seem to be the most tight-fisted, as almost...

The educational roles between parents and their children have been reversed, according to Fisher-Price research, with kids 'out-teching' their parents. Despite mums and dads traditionally educating and assisting their little ones, in the case of coding, children are the ones in charge, teaching their parents everything they have been taught at school. Sixteen per cent of young children can already use logical reasoning skills on the computer, while 13 per cent can organise digital content and 18 per cent know...

It was only when Dianne Vavra looked up one evening to see her husband streaming a basketball game on his laptop, her son absorbed by Mario Kart on the Wii and her daughter playing a game app on an iPod Touch that she realised. “The family was in the same room, but not together". The concept, dubbed the "Domestic Matrix" by the New York Times - families sharing a common space, but plugged into entirely separate planes of existence through technology - is...