Millions of children living with drink addicted parents | UK | News

Calls from desperate children living with alcoholic parents have increased by 60 per cent since 2019, new figures reveal.

The National Association for Children of Alcoholics (Nacoa) says its helpline has seen a dramatic increase in the number of youth reaching out for support. In 2025 alone the charity received 37,000 contacts from people affected by a parent’s drinking; High levels of relationship breakdown and parental death were reported to be problematic.

Campaigners warn that an estimated 2.6 million children in the UK live with a parent who drinks too much, many in silence and shame.

The worrying rise comes as new data from the NSPCC shows the extent of damage to family homes.

The NSPCC Helpline was contacted 9,192 times in the year to March 2025 by people concerned about a parent or carer using alcohol or drugs; This number averaged 25 people every day.

In England alone, 73,250 children who underwent a Child in Need assessment between April 2024 and March 2025 were identified as having a parent who misused alcohol.

The highest figures were recorded in the North West (13,930) and South East (11,750); London recorded 8,030 cases, with Yorkshire and The Humber close behind with 8,010 cases.

Children growing up in homes affected by alcoholism:

Six times more likely to witness domestic violence

Five times more likely to develop eating problems

Three times more likely to consider suicide

Twice as likely to struggle in school

They are three times more likely to develop addiction

You’re twice as likely to get into trouble with the police

Families like the Peeks from Framlingham, Suffolk, are behind the statistics.
Amelie Peek, now 14, was just ten years old when her father, Dan, died of cirrhosis of the liver at the age of 41. Dan, the department head teacher who taught drama classes, had been drinking since he was 15.
Next Monday, Amelie will take her campaign to parliament, where her remarks will be delivered to MPs.
In his letter to the Prime Minister, he wrote: “My father died of alcoholism. It was terrible. Schools, doctors, no one was helping us. The teachers told me to stop talking about it because I was upsetting my classmates. This made me uncomfortable.”
“Please help NACOA help the children of alcoholics. I miss my father so much.”
His mother Lucy Norfolk, 44, said: “Dan was put on a ventilator. He had been drinking since he was 15 and I never thought he would stop.”
“He tried. He went to rehab, but when he quit, he was having seizures and getting sick. I thought no one would choose to die that way. But alcoholism is a disease.”
She said addiction transformed the man she loved.
“Dan was very good with kids. He was great at teaching them. But the alcoholism made him a different person. It was like he was possessed by something and he would feel so guilty and drink again.”
Lucy said she often felt completely alone.
“I felt like a single parent. I couldn’t trust leaving the kids with her.”
“He would often get angry when he was drunk. It was like walking on eggshells. It was very tiring.”
She added: “His drinking affected the family and the children would feel it was their fault. There is so much stigma around alcoholism.”

After Dan’s death, Amelie was determined to speak out.
“Dan was ten when he died and he immediately wrote to the government,” said Lucy. “When Dan got sick from alcohol, people blamed him. This cannot be considered an illness.”
Hilary Henriques MBE, Chief Executive of Nacoa UK, said: “News of the huge increase in parental alcohol deaths is devastating for children’s charities like us, who witness the daily effects of parental addiction on children. Alcohol problems affect the whole family. Behind these statistics are mothers and fathers whose children will live with the chaos of someone else’s drinking. But with greater awareness and support, we will help children find healthy ways to cope and break the cycle of addiction.”
Professor Ian Gilmore, President of the Alcohol Health Alliance, added: “We need systemic change to protect children and their families from the harm of alcohol. The government must create a new alcohol strategy to tackle the harm of alcohol and include specific measures to support families and protect children.”

A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said: “Amelie showed incredible courage in sharing her story and our thoughts are with her and every child who has gone through what she did.

“This government is committed to ensuring that anyone with a drug or alcohol problem can access the help and support they need.

“Therefore, from this year all treatment and recovery funding will be channeled through the Public Health Grant, with more than £13bn allocated over three years, including £3.4bn ring-fenced for alcohol and drug treatment and recovery.

“Through our 10-Year Health Plan, we will also continue to expand support by shifting the focus from disease to prevention.”