Real Life Advice Report 2025: Chapter 2 – Parents postpone retirement plans to support children

Parents are under financial stress as a result of providing financial support to their children – with many believing they may need to delay their retirement plans.

This is according to our Real Life Advice Report 2025. It surveyed 8,000 people to find out how their attitudes to money, financial advice and the future had changed over time.

At a glance:

• More than one in five parents (22%) expect their children to be financially dependent well into adulthood. This is reshaping their retirement plans.
• Parents are the biggest influence on how children learn about money. However, social media is rising in popularity as a source of education.
• Parents who receive ongoing financial advice are more likely to pass on healthy financial habits to their children, and to prepare them for the future.

Much has been written about the difficult economic environment we are living through. And with the Autumn Budget set to bring spending cuts and tax rises, the picture ahead may appear gloomy too.

In our last Insights article on the second chapter of the report, we examined how parents were pessimistic about their children’s financial futures. Concerns about home ownership and AI replacing jobs were on the agenda.

In this article, we explore how many parents face life-changing decisions to continue financially supporting their children over the long term.

The intergenerational ripple effect

A third (31%) of parents believe they will have to delay retirement to be able to continue financially supporting their children, according to the report.

Four in ten parents (39%) expect they will have to continue supporting their children while in retirement. This sentiment is more widespread among parents of under-18s (49%), compared to those with adult children (30%).

Some parents believe their help will be necessary for generations beyond their children. Almost four in ten parents (39%) expect they will have to financially bear any childcare costs for potential grandchildren.

In addition, a quarter of parents believe they will have to use their retirement savings to continue financially supporting their children. This rises to a third of parents of under-18s, compared to just 17% for those with adult children. A smaller proportion of parents (15%) anticipate they will release equity from their homes to continue supporting their children.

The need to provide financial support for children is causing financial stress for many parents. But the impact extends beyond money. Many parents believe they could be forced to make logistical changes to their lives given the challenging economic conditions.

A third of parents (34%) believe rising property rentals costs and difficulties in getting on the property ladder could see their children moving back home. Parents of younger children (46%) particularly feel these concerns.

The importance of financial education

The research highlights the importance of financial education and the role of parents in helping their children make good financial decisions.

According to the report, parents remain the biggest influence on how children learn about money. Positively, six in ten (58%) already talk openly about it. Many regularly talk to their children about money and try to help them develop good money habits.

But social media is playing an increasingly influential role too. Three in ten (28%) parents believe social media to be the largest influence in their children’s financial education.

As social media grows as an educational tool, so do concerns about its influence on younger generations. A third of parents (33%) of young children are afraid that online platforms could be unhelpful and misinformative.

One clear benefit of talking about money on social media is how much more accessible this topic has become. However, it also raises a question over the need for greater regulatory scrutiny over financial content posted online.

Millions of individuals are making decisions based on content across platforms like TikTok or Instagram. Pressure is growing for influencers to be held accountable for the information they share. Regulators have a clear role to play in enforcing stricter rules for social media platforms.

Talking money

It’s clear that encouraging more families to talk about their finances can help lead to better money habits among younger generations. And financial advice has a key role to play.

Four in ten parents (39%) taking ongoing professional advice believe their children have the foundations of a good financial education. This compares to 28% of those that don’t receive advice.

Meanwhile, nearly a fifth (18%) of parents taking ongoing advice state their children already have investments and ‘passive wealth’. This compares to just 8% of those without an adviser.

Parents who receive ongoing financial advice are twice as likely to tell their children to put a financial plan in place. They are also more likely to emphasise structured, long-term strategies. There is little doubt that this will help set children up for a more secure financial future. Ideally a future that won’t cause their parents as much financial stress.

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Background

Opinium surveyed 8,000 UK adults nationwide between 22nd July and 5th August 2025. Quotas and post-weighting were applied to the sample to make the dataset representative of the UK adult population. Within this poll, the relevant weighted sub-samples were:

• Men, women, other gender, 18-34, 35-54, 55+, Scotland, Northern Ireland, North East, North West, Yorkshire and Humberside, East Midlands, West Midlands, Wales, East of England, London, South East, South West, working, self-employed, student, retired, unemployed, other not working.

SJP Approved 05/11/2025