 News
21st February 2006
Nearly half of all children 'are born out of wedlock'
The proportion of children born outside marriage in the
UK has leapt from 12 per cent in 1980 to 42 per cent in 2004, according
to the Office for National Statistics (ONS).
Other countries in the EU averaged 33 per cent born outside of marriage,
with only Sweden and France having a higher percentage than the UK
The lowest countries were Spain and Germany.
ONS editor Hayley Butcher said, "Although most children are born to married
couples, this substantial rise in births outside marriage is a reflection
of the rising trend in cohabiting parents."
From 1986 to 2004, the percentage of non-married people under 60 who
co-habited rose from 11 per cent to 24 per cent among men, and from 13
to 25 per cent for women.
The annual Social Trends report also said that the average UK household
size fell from 2.9 to 2.4 people from 1971 to 2005.
According to the ONS this was due to more single-parent families, smaller
families and an increase in households of just one person.
The report also looked at other trends in day to day life and found that
the number of households in the UK increased by 30 per cent - from 18.6
to 24.2 million - between 1971 and 2005 while the number of people living
alone reached seven million, representing 29 per cent of all households,
up from 18 per cent in 1971.
The ONS' Social Trends study also reported that young men were more likely
to live with their parents than young women.
Some 57 per cent of men aged 20 to 24 lived with their parents in 2005
- up from 50 per cent in 1991 - compared with just 38 per cent of women
- up from 32 per cent.
"Some young people may remain at home while in education or because of
economic necessity, such as difficulties entering the housing market,"
the report said.
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