Empty Nesters: New research from Sky Mobile reveals almost half of parents (47%) are starting to fret about the prospect of having an empty nest
Call Frequency: Majority of parents (94%) want calls at least weekly
Checking-in: Being too busy with coursework (46%) and not having any updates (23%) amongst the top excuses for students not contacting home
Roll over data: Sky Mobile makes it easier for families to stay connected, with customers able to roll their spare data each month and share it with others
New research from Sky Mobile, voted Best Pay Monthly and Best Value Pay Monthly network by Uswitch, has revealed with students going back to university this September, almost half (47%) of British parents are starting to fret about having an empty nest with 41% admitting that they would like their kids to contact home more frequently.
The study of 2,000 British parents and students found that most parents (94%) are not quite ready for the months of peace and quiet ahead, with parents expecting daily calls from their kids (32%), weekly check-ins (31%) or contact at least three-five times a week (21%).
Sky Mobile has teamed up with actress and presenter, Sheree Murphy, whose daughter, Ruby is off to university this month to share some of her own anecdotes of having an empty nest.
Sheree Murphy, actress and presenter, said, I've always known this moment was coming, but nothing could have prepared me for Ruby heading off to university. As a parent, it's a rollercoaster of emotions. I'm so excited for her and her new adventures, but I'm definitely one of those parents who expects regular video call and thanks to Sky Mobile, Ruby has no excuse as I'll be sharing my data with her for whenever she runs out!
Touching base
When it comes to some of the reasons why students plan to contact home, keeping in touch with family (66%), having a general catch-up (65%) or getting life advice (31%) come up top. Whilst almost a quarter (24%) will call home to check on the family pet and nearly one-in-five to ask for money (17%).
And, if parents are wondering why their children aren't getting in touch more, being too busy with coursework (46%), not having any news to share (23%) and socialising with friends (22%) are amongst the top excuses for children not checking-in.
Delving deeper, the research reveals that most students plan to call their parents (62%), video call (46%) or chat to them via social messaging apps (46%) but almost one in five students say they can't keep in touch as they're low on data or minutes (16%) - with this figure rising to just under one in four (23%) for first year students needing a boost in mobile data or minutes.
Top reasons for contacting home
Top excuses for not contacting home
To check-in on family - 66%
Too busy with coursework - 46%
To have a general catch-up - 65%
Being stressed and don't want to worry parents with problems - 26%
To get life advice - 31%
Don't have any updates - 23%
Being homesick - 28%
Too busy socialising - 22%
For mental health support - 27%
Forgetting - 17%
Contacting tactics
Some of the ways parents plan to hear from their kids more often include organising a visit (31%), inviting them to family events (28%) and sending them a present to let them know they're being thought of (26%). With almost one in ten also planning to send guilt inducing messages to encourage their children to phone home more. Even with these tactics, it's surprising to see that only one fifth (20%) will follow their children on social media.
But not all parents are disheartened over their nests being empty, nearly two-fifths (39%) plan on using their spare time to go on holiday or take up a hobby (35%) and just over a third are excited at the prospect of buying less food (34%).
Paul Sweeney, Managing Director of Sky Mobile said:
Its an exciting time for new and returning students but contacting home may not always be top priority. With Sky Mobile, it's easy for parents to roll their spare data and share it with their kids for an extra data boost, helping families to stay connected.
Unlike other network providers, Sky Mobile lets you keep all their data for up to three years. Every month any spare data rolls into your Piggybank ready for you to use later or share with family. Spare data can be shared with up to 7 SIMs on the account or can be exchanged for rewards, like accessories or money off a new phone.
For more details on Sky Mobile visit sky.com/mobile.
Note to editors:
Research conducted by OnePoll on behalf of Sky Mobile. Total sample size was 2,000 18+ UK respondents of parents and students. Survey conducted online between Wednesday 8th - Monday 12th September 2021.
Sky Mobile benefits at a glance:
Roll - Every month your spare data rolls into your Sky Piggybank ready for you to use later or to share with your family
Watch - Unlimited streaming of Sky apps so you can enjoy live sports, the best shows and kids' favourites without using your data
Text to Switch - Simply text PAC to 65075 to get your switching code. We'll take care of the rest
Swap - Upgrade to a shiny new phone anytime you like and save money when you swap your old one
Mix - Change data plans whenever you like
Piggybank - Share spare data in your Sky Piggybank with up to seven SIMs on your account or exchange it for rewards
For more details on Sky Mobile visit sky.com/mobile.
For further information, please contact the Red Sky Mobile team via skymobileteam@redconsultancy.com or the Sky Mobile team directly via: gemma.ratton@sky.uk / jillian.reilly@sky.uk
About Sky
Sky is Europe's leading media and entertainment company and is proud to be part of Comcast Corporation. Across six countries, we connect our 23.4 million customers to the best entertainment, sports, news and arts including our ow
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
06/09/2026
June 9 2026, 23:00 (PDT) Dolby and MagentaTV Bring Fans Closer to the FIFA Worl...
04/08/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
05/07/2026
We've gone to another level of integrating the graphics into the set architecture -Zac Fields, Fox Sports, SVP of Graphic Technology and Integration...
05/07/2026
Browser-based and desktop apps available
Digital Sunset Studios have been busy working on an interesting project: a free software tool that provides compute...
04/07/2026
When Canada qualified for the FIFA World Cup 2026, OneSoccer knew this wasn'...
04/07/2026
Celebrates company's 80th anniversary
Rhodes have recently revealed that they will be producing a limited run of electric pianos in celebration of their...
04/07/2026
Blackmagic Design Cameras Empower Youth Broadcasting Program
Brie Clayton July 3, 2026
0 Comments
Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera 6K Pro and Blackmagi...
04/07/2026
iZotope Joins Boris FX
Boris Yamnitsky July 3, 2026
0 Comments
iZotope, the team behind RX and Ozone, is joining Boris FX. A letter from founder Boris...
04/07/2026
April 7 2026, 19:00 (PDT) Detective Conan: Fallen Angel of the Highway Opens in...
03/07/2026
New bundle & three Single Packs
Continuing to expand their already sizeable orchestral collection, VSL's latest release introduces three new Single Pack...
03/07/2026
Venue installs new ATC-equipped control room
LSO St Luke's, a unique music venue that also serves as the home of the London Symphony Orchestra, have rec...
03/07/2026
Caden Pearson appointed new Commissioning Editor for NITV
3 July, 2026
Media releases
National Indigenous Television (NITV) has strengthened its commitment...
03/07/2026
1 February 2023
SHARE Facebook Twitter Linkedin Email
Munich, Germany, 1st February 2023: Cinegy GmbH, the premier provider of software technology for digit...
03/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
03/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
03/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
03/07/2026
Death Star
Andy Marken July 2, 2026
0 Comments
Look, I can't get involved. I've got work to do. It's not that I like the Empire; I hate i...
03/07/2026
Berklee's New Visual Identity: Honoring Our History, Building for What's...
03/07/2026
Scripps Research scientists awarded $2M to advance global disease surveillance Two Gates Foundation grants will expand wastewater surveillance and AI-driven dis...
03/07/2026
Joan Pulupa joins Scripps Research faculty to study the organization of DNA in brain cells and its links to neurodegeneration Using smell-sensing neurons and ad...
02/07/2026
Entering her senior year, this hometown girl is paving a career in live sports production gaining experience in replay and audio and as a TD
In the live-sports...
02/07/2026
In-venue and creative video staffers at the professional and collegiate level ha...
02/07/2026
BLAST, a competitive entertainment company focused on esports, has announced more than $133 million in revenue for 2025, representing more than 40% year-over-ye...
02/07/2026
Riedel Communications has announced official SKAARHOJ panel support for SimplyLive production workflows, enabled through the SimplyLive 2.1 release. The integra...
02/07/2026
The Fire Rescue Service of the Czech Republic has deployed LiveU video-over-bond...
02/07/2026
Gravity Media USA has announced the appointment of Brittney Boston as Head of Business Development, effective July 1, 2026. Based in Nashville, Tennessee, Bosto...
02/07/2026
TwelveLabs, a video intelligence company, has announced $100 million in Series B funding co-led by NEA and NAVER Ventures, with participation from Amazon, Radic...
02/07/2026
The Pro Padel League (PPL) has announced a broadcast partnership with USA Sports that will air five PPL championship matches on CNBC during the 2026 season, the...
02/07/2026
LiveLike, a digital fan engagement platform, has announced eight confirmed FIFA ...
02/07/2026
Cobalt Digital has received Future's Best of Show Award, presented by AV Technology at InfoComm 2026, for its blueCORE family of standalone signal processor...
02/07/2026
Synamedia has announced the appointment of Dr. Tzvi Gerstl as Chief Executive Officer. Paul Segre, who has served as CEO for the past six years, will transition...
02/07/2026
The Esports Foundation (EF) and Sony Group Corporation have announced an expanded collaboration for the Esports World Cup 2026 (EWC), taking place in Paris, Fra...
02/07/2026
Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd. ( Z') has announced exclusive broadcast and digital rights for the Bundesliga in India for five years, beginning with the...
02/07/2026
An effort uniting News, Sports, Local, and Telemundo, the 50+-camera live produc...
02/07/2026
Zoey Deutch, John Slattery, Ken Marino, Miles Gutierrez-Riley, and Ben Wang appe...
02/07/2026
Stammering, stuttering, strangulated tones
The Crow Hill Company's latest creation promises to be the most original sound set they've produced to d...
02/07/2026
A new era in unmixing and spectral editing
The latest version of Steinberg's spectral audio-editing software has just arrived, building on the strength...
02/07/2026
Aims to simplify additive synthesis
Sine Machine is the debut launch from Melatonin, a Vienna-based developer who have spent the past six years creating wha...
02/07/2026
Products to remain fully active & supported
Following the news of Native Instruments joining the inMusic brand line-up, Academy and Emmy Award-winning visua...
02/07/2026
What you missed!
Last weekend, Saturday 27 June 2026, saw the debut of Sound On Sounds new GearExpo UK event, the largest dedicated pro-audio event to take ...
02/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
02/07/2026
Following the successful launch of its inaugural APAC Mentoring Programme last month, the Rise AV APAC Regional Council will bring the conversation around mento...
02/07/2026
Blackmagic PYXIS 6K Used to Shoot Director Takahisa Zeze's Cry Out
Brie Clayton July 2, 2026
0 Comments
Highly mobile camera supports tense and de...
02/07/2026
Broadcast Solutions acquires BFE, expanding its lead in European broadcast, medi...
02/07/2026
Berklee Alum and Faculty Perform at Boston Public Library's 250th Anniversar...
02/07/2026
Broadcast Solutions GmbH, a leading systems integrator and provider of innovative solutions for the broadcast media industry, is acquiring BFE Studio und Medien...
02/07/2026
Cinegy GmbH, the premier provider of software-defined television technology, has extended the ingest facility at leading Brazilian sports company LiveMode, work...
02/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
Empty Nesters: New research from Sky Mobile reveals almost half of parents (47%) are starting to fret about the prospect of having an empty nest
