Parents give an average of £23,000 when helping their children with a deposit to get onto the property ladder, according to new research from Shelter.

The same poll also found that a fifth of parents helping their children onto the housing ladder had done so using savings set aside for retirement or elderly care.

However, or the majority of parents being able to help their children buy a home just isn’t possible. The research shows that 60% of UK parents are unable to save any money for their children's future.

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Unless politicians commit to building more affordable homes, young people and families who can't rely on help from their parents will find that a home of their own becomes an ever more distant dream.

Chief executive of Shelter Campbell Robb said: "When parents are having to hand over such vast sums of money to help their children afford a stable home, it is yet another sign that the housing market is spinning out of control.

"A whole generation of young people are working hard and saving hard, but our desperate shortage of affordable homes still leaves them priced out.

"A pay-out from the Bank of Mum and Dad can’t be the next generation's only chance of affording a home of their own. Politicians need to give back hope to all those left priced out by building the affordable homes they are crying out for."

(CD/MH)