6.6.1 Percentage of Indigenous children and youth aged 5 to 14 years who live with two parents or a lone parent, by Indigenous identity, 2011
Note: Excludes National Household Survey data for one or more incompletely enumerated Indian reserves or Indian settlements.
Source: CICH graphic created using data adapted from Statistics Canada. Table 477-0091 – Distribution of the population aged 5 to 24 with Aboriginal identity, by age group and living arrangement, Canada, occasional (percent unless otherwise noted).
In 2011, the majority of Indigenous children and youth aged 5 to 14 years lived with their parents.
56% of First Nations children and youth in this age group lived with two parents, while 38% lived with a lone parent.
66% of Métis children and youth in this age group lived with two parents, while 31% lived with a lone parent.
68% of Inuit children and youth in this age group lived with two parents, while 27% lived with a lone parent.
Implications
Indigenous children have diverse and varied living arrangements. While most live in families with a married couple, they are less likely than non-Indigenous children to be living with married parents and more likely to be living in other types of family arrangements. While living in a lone-parent household likely results in socio-economic disadvantages to Indigenous children, it is important to remember that in Indigenous cultures, child-rearing is traditionally shared among extended families and communities.1
1Lafrance, J., & Collins, D. (2013). Residential schools and Aboriginal parenting: voices of parents. Native Social Work Journal, 4(1), 104-125.