Marriage, Family and Sexuality

Abstract

The family is one of the basic institutions of our society. Much of our social world is dependent upon it. In 1960, 95 per cent of people aged between 45 and 49 in Great Britain were married, or had been married (Finer Report, 1974, p.25). Housing, goods and services are provided primarily for family consumption; wages, taxes and benefits are based on family income; and, as social workers will know, social services are concentrated within the context of the family.