New Report Puts Spotlight on What Matters Most To Canadians - Families

OTTAWA, Oct 4 /CNW/ - The Vanier Institute of the Family has released Families Count: Profiling Canada's Families IV.   Timed to provide a backdrop for National Family Week, (October 4-9), Families Count details the many trends that are reshaping family life in Canada.

"National Family Week gives us occasion to celebrate the central place of families in our lives, and to acknowledge the incredibly vital role that families play in society. Few things are of greater importance to Canadians than the health and well-being of our families," says Clarence Lochhead, Executive Director, Vanier Institute of the Family. "Canada's families may be changing in some remarkable ways, but in all their diversity, they remain the cornerstone of our lives."

Founded by former Governor General George Vanier and Mme Pauline Vanier in 1965, the Vanier Institute of the Family continues to research and publish data and analysis on family life in Canada. Families Count is the fourth in a series of publications since 1994 that draws on the most recent data to provide a new picture of Canadian families and the challenges they face.

The data in Families Count shows that while family life in Canada is diverse and dynamic, all families balance the essential and fundamental challenges of providing and caring for loved-ones. "The research shows we are too often taking the remarkable resiliency and strength of families for granted," says Lochhead. "Many families are simply being stretched beyond their capacity. The evidence can be seen in rising rates of poverty, growing levels of household debt, and the many stresses emanating from the severe time crunch so many Canadians routinely face."

Families Count updates data on a wide range of metrics from demographics, educational attainment, work-life balance, economic well-being, housing, and the provision of care within and between generations.

"Our success as a nation - whether it's the economy, the environment, health care, or our aging population - will depend on the health of our families, and there's much we can do to increase our chances of success by supporting families," says Katherine Scott, the Institute's Director of Programs and principal author of Families Count.

The Families Count databook and highlights are available online:  www.vifamily.ca

For further information:

For interviews and more information on Families Count contact:

Nicola Maule
The Vanier Institute of the Family
[phone] ext. 213
[email protected]