Independent attitude

© Cyrillus

Abigail started work selling luxury goods and then took temping jobs to make ends meet. She's now opened an estate agent's in Norfolk. "When you bring a child up on your own, everything and anything is down to you. It's a lot of weight on your shoulders, and you can't slack off."

Better off alone
Still, Abigail accepts her choice and is happy to live with it: "It's not normal to be living on your own at 33 but it's a decision I made. I'd much rather spend my time with my child than a new boyfriend. At one point my daughter wanted me to find a husband so she could have brothers and sisters, and maybe also so I wouldn't be on my own so much. But now she's 7, she's very happy with how things are. It's just as well because after an operation I can't have any more kids."


For advice on single parenting check out www.oneparentfamilies.org.uk (England and Wales), www.opfs.org.uk (Scotland) or www.gingerbreadni.org (Northern Ireland).

• Mother hen
• Dealing with an absent father
• Organised mum
• Divorced parents
• Part-time mum
• Dividing time with child
• Determined to have a baby
• Experiencing pregnancy and childbirth alone
• Independent mum
• "It's all down to me"