THE SIMPLE PLEASURES: Orange mother of two Dianne Vernon with her sons Ty, 5, and Daffyd, 8. Mrs Vernon and her husband both work to pay the bills and her two young sons miss them when they are not there. Photo: NADINE MORTON 1031child1
EIGHT-year-old Daffyd Vernon says he misses his parents every day when they are working.
“It’s fun when they’re both home ... we run under the sprinklers, draw pictures and play games,” he said.
Daffyd’s mother Dianne Vernon says her two sons miss out on the simple pleasures in life while she and husband Gareth are working, but it is a necessity they cannot escape.
“If you want to have a home and spending money you both have to work,” she said.
Mrs Vernon was not surprised to hear 2011 Census data released this week showed more parents of children under five were working than the 2006 census.
Data showed 1158 children aged under five in Orange had both parents working, a jump of 19.9 per cent on 966 in 2006.
It was for financial reasons that Mrs Vernon was forced to return to work not long after her children were born.
“I couldn’t afford to stay off any longer,” she said.
Mrs Vernon and her husband work full time, but she said she would rather be at home with her two young sons Daffyd, 8, and Ty, 5.
Stay-at-home parents are becoming a thing of the past, according to Waratah Early Learning Centre director Natalie Hay.
“I’m not surprised [at the data], we all like to live a good life, we like good cars and going out to dinner,” she said.
“That’s why people go back to work The majority of parents here are both working.”
Orange mum and childcare worker Charlene Wright says most children at the centre where she works have both parents working.
Mrs Wright herself is among the increasing number of working parents.
“Overall, things are just going up in price, food’s not cheap, electricity is going up and to cater for that you have to work,” she said.
“The idea of the perfect life is expanding and leaves us wanting more.”
Since the 2006 census Orange has also recorded a substantial growth in population, with 2718 new people deciding to call the city home taking the total population to 38,057.
The 7.7 per cent jump in population was at a higher rate than the state population, which grew by 5.6 per cent to 6,917,656 people.
nadine.morton@fairfaxmedia.com.au
