Censuses of Population and Housing provide a more detailed classification of different family types. The 1992 Survey of Families in Australia provides a wide range of data, not available from other collections, about the characteristics of families and family members, and the nature of family support. Child Care Surveys provide data about the number of children receiving child care, the reasons for its use, and who the providers are. Over the past two decades, the number of children in Australia has remained fairly constant at around 3.8 million. Families vary considerably in size and structure, ranging from one parent with one child to large extended families.
Many children live in more than one family type during their childhood.
In 1992 there were 2.1 million families with children aged under 15. Family size varied according to family type. The average number of children in a couple family with children was 1.9 while the average number of children in a one parent family was 1.6. Children living in de facto couple families were likely to be younger than those living in registered married couple families. Step families are couple families with only one natural parent of the children present.