It’s the moment every parent both dreads and dreams of – waving their teen off to university, hoping they’ll thrive in the big wide world.

But, behind proud smiles, seven in ten London parents (71%) feel their teens are unprepared for the realities of life outside the family home, and admit they lack confidence in their children’s ability to live an independent life.

New UK data from Yugo, the first global student housing brand and operator created to enhance student lives through and beyond university life, has uncovered the home truths behind young adults flying the nest – and the verdict is, London parents don’t have a huge amount of faith in their children.

But despite these figures, more than half of London parents (52%) say they’ve made an effort to teach their child about life skills before preparing them to leave home, and 44% believe their main responsibility is to get their teen ready for the real world.

Yet, 48% of locals worry how their teen will cope without their family around – especially when the average British teen asks an adult for help a whopping 20 times a day.

The biggest worries for London parents

London folks have done their best to drill the essential life skills into their teens, including the basics such as tidying their room (56%), making the bed (55%), food shopping on a budget (47%), and doing their own washing (43%). They’ve even taught them how to be mindful of their mental health (41%), and hilariously, how to boil an egg (37%).

But despite all these efforts, locals blame their child’s ill preparedness on technology – with four in ten (45%) saying their teen spends too much time on their phone, or playing games online (41%).

However, 46% of London parents believe their children aren’t ready to leave the home as they have always had everything done for them – so technology isn’t the only element to blame…

Learning the hard way

While some parents are worried about how their teens will cope once they fly the nest, there’s also room for optimism; 88% of Londoners believe their child will get a major reality check when they leave home – admitting that’s not necessarily a bad thing.

Many parents admit that they themselves only learned vital life skills once they had to fend for themselves.

‘University is the best education – in more ways than one’

Despite their worries, 93% of London parents agree that university isn’t just about getting a degree. It’s a crash course in real life, forcing teens to become independent, responsible, and (hopefully) a little more appreciative of everything their parents did for them.

Joe Persechino, Chief Operating Officer at Yugo comments:

“University isn’t just about lectures and exams – it’s where young people truly learn to stand on their own two feet. It’s a time of discovery, from figuring out how to budget, to learning the art of laundry (without shrinking everything!). And while parents might worry, they can take comfort in knowing that these life lessons will help shape their children into capable, independent adults.

“At Yugo we’re not just about housing — we’re about creating vibrant, sustainable, and supportive spaces where students can thrive. This is because we know that no matter how hard parents try to prepare them, students understandably need lots of extra support once they leave home.”

“Our Live Your Best Life (LYBL) programme provides training and development opportunities to build students’ confidence and empower them to live their lives with purpose and impact. It covers many essential life skills from baking and planting to carbon literacy training, and even workshops on how to navigate AI and utilise it to the best of their advantage” adds Persechino.

Ready or not… here comes real life!

So, whether they’re leaving home with a well-rehearsed list of life skills, or a total lack of preparation, one thing is certain – they’ll have to learn somehow. And if they don’t? Well, their parents’ phones will be ringing non-stop come September.

TOP 30 LIFE SKILLS EVERY PARENT HOPES TO TEACH THEIR CHILD:
1. Tidying their room – 63%
2. Making the bed – 58%
3. Putting away and hanging up clothes – 52%
4. Grocery shopping on a budget – 50%
5. Starting a savings account – 48%
6. Doing your own washing – 47%
7. Being mindful of your mental health – 44%
8. Shopping for a bargain – 43%
9. How to have empathy for others – 43%
10. Folding laundry properly – 42%
11. A good sense of humour – 42%
12. Good time management – 42%
13. Cleaning the bathroom – 41%
14. Swimming – 41%
15. Learning to be resilient – 39%
16. Recognising when to seek help – 39%
17. Boiling an egg – 39%
18. Cooking a spag-bol – 37%
19. Paying a bill – 37%
20. Seeing family as a priority – 37%
21. Separating darks from whites when doing laundry – 37%
22. Emergency contacts and procedures – 36%
23. Creating a budget and sticking to it – 36%
24. Navigating public transport – 36%
25. Following Google map directions – 35%
26. Booking a doctor/dentist appointment – 35%
27. Using an iron properly – 33%
28. Understanding food safety and cross contamination – 32%
29. Never forgetting your roots – 31%
30. Reading a train timetable – 29%