ABSTRACT
This chapter is concerned with the shelter-service crisis facing the average single-parent family. It argues for the need to view housing and services as a package. The shelter-service house provides the possibility of working at home, caring for children, and sharing expenses. The chapter describes the population of single parents and the problems they face and reviews some of the experiments taking place in Europe and America to alleviate shelter-service problems. Within the group of single-parent families, there are differences not only of gender but of race, marital status, age, education, and income. A problem in formulating a long-run strategy which would be responsive to the shelter-service needs of single parents is recognizing the differences within that group. The predicament of single parents regarding housing and services is greatly affected by the neighborhood in which they live; hence, the importance of viewing housing and neighborhood as a package.
