How Grandparents are Stepping in to the Role of Parent

Today there are a rising number of grandparents who are providing care for their grandchildren as if they were second parents. With more mothers going in to the work force, presented with greater opportunities, grandparents come to be the reliable source of childcare for their grandchildren. There are three types of grandparent-grandchild relationships prevalent today: Custodial, Live in grandchildren, and Day-Care grandparents. Today “5-10% of children under the age of 18 are residing with their grandparents.”(Dellmann-Jenkins, 2002)* Which is an astronomical number. 

Custodial grandparents have sole custody of their grandchildren, it is a relationship established by law. They are the primary care giver for that child, and are responsible for that child’s development and wellbeing. “Custodial grandparents try to provide a stable environment for their grandchildren, sometimes when their own children were drug- and alcohol addicted.” (DeGenova & Rice, 2002). This statement shows how custodial grandparents feel obligated to provide a safe environment for their grandchildren, in place of the abusive and dangerous on that they may have had with their biological parents. 

The next type of grandparent-grandchild relationship is one in which they child and the grandparent are not legally bonded together but they still reside in the same home. The grandparent is still a primary care giver, but they in no way have custody over the child or legal guardianship. Children who are cared for by their grandparents were often in danger of their biological parents returning to get them at any given time, in which “…They would have no way of protecting the child from an unsuitable or even dangerous parent.” (DeGenova & Rice, 2002).