Single mothers in China find a new kind of partner – other single mothers

Single mothers Zhu Danyu, second left, and Fei Yuan with their children. The families live together in Nanjing, China, so they can be ‘sharing and managing the risks and pressures of life’, says Zhu. Photograph: Ding Gang/The Guardian

As divorce rates rise and the cost of living bites, single mothers in China are searching for a new kind of partner: each other.

Across social media are posts from harried mothers seeking like-minded parents to share a home and child-rearing responsibilities.