Money woes, where to eat and what film to watch are the subjects most likely to ignite arguments among families during the school holidays. Research of 2,000 mums and dads with children aged four to 12 said worries about the financial impact of entertaining the children is most likely to cause a bust-up.
Overall 77 per cent admitted they feel pressure to keep their children entertained over the summer, and as a result, the average family will have 18 tiffs in total during the break.
One in 10 blame the summer heat for putting family tensions at boiling point, and one in five parents also confess that the summer break is the time of year they’re most likely to bicker with their kids.Most notably the OnePoll study, on behalf of comparison website comparethemarket.com, found that 1pm has been pinpointed by parents as the summertime squabbling ‘witching hour’.
Dr. Sam Wass, child psychologist from Channel 4’s The Secret Life of 4- and 5-Year-Olds, says: “Although most children look forward to the summer holidays, they can also be a tough time for many families. Long periods of unstructured time can lead to lots of disagreements!” Other reasons for top summer squabbles include; irritating behaviour, making too much mess and not being able to agree as a family what to do.