British family is shrinking as 60 per cent of parents say we can't afford a second child

Almost two thirds of parents who have one child say they are too poor to have a second. The crippling cost of bringing up youngsters means the average size of a British family is ‘shrinking’, a report claimed yesterday. It found the average bill for raising a child from birth until the age of 21 is around £270,000. Some 64 per cent of those with two children say they cannot afford to have a third.