The combination of population ageing, changing family structures and patterns of employment is having an increasing impact on intergenerational relations in Western societies. The ‘generational contract’ is being affected by women's growing labour market participation, especially among mothers with young children, the extension of the period spent in education and training and the curtailment of welfare expansion. Since women carry the main burden of care work, the organisation of social care is a key issue in understanding changing intergenerational relations. This article explores the perceptions that European families in different socio-political contexts have of changing intergenerational relations and their expectations of policy actors.