Fertility rate in England and Wales has fallen to lowest rate since records began in 1939
Photograph: d3sign/Getty ImagesPhotograph: d3sign/Getty ImagesElizabeth, 29, a sales executive from Surrey, would very much like to have children, but feels she is unable to do so for the time being.
Her parents, Elizabeth says, were a teacher and a management accountant, earning roughly what she and her partner earn now, about £84,000“My sister and I both went to various clubs, had all the kit, and regular social outings. My sister had braces. We didn’t live in a house we owned all of that time, but we did eventually.”
Many respondents to an online callout said that, even if the cost of living, their earnings or maternity pay improved, their financial precarity would not, as their jobs were not secure. Scores of respondents – most of them graduates – saying they were either gig workers, freelancers or on temporary or fixed-term contracts.For 32-year-old Rachel, from Devon, who works for a charity, it has been insecure employment more than anything else that has been putting children out of reach so far.
“The longer we wait the more concerned I become about infertility and problems in pregnancy,” Rachel says. “The thought of not having children terrifies me, but equally the thought of having children and not being able to provide for them terrifies me.” “I would have been OK renting for a few more years – my parents didn’t own their own home – but my husband had this idea that he should be the provider. We finally started trying two and a half years ago, but it hasn’t worked so far.”
“It took until our mid-30s to feel financially secure and professionally accomplished,” he said. “That moment coincided with the pandemic, which felt like it robbed us of two years of being able to enjoy a nice lifestyle and regular holidays before settling down. We’ve been trying for a few months now, and are aware that we’ve left it late to start.”
“We can’t afford to live in the places we grew up, which means no local grandparents or long-term friends for support and childcare,” said NHS worker Kay, 30, from Leeds. “We’ve been priced out of our proverbial village.” “The NHS isn’t in a good state, including midwifery,” she said. “I feel trepidation about having children after reading so many reports about people having long-term problems after births, and hearing about Shrewsbury and Telford ,Many people in their 20s voiced anxiety about not being able to access healthcare and other services for themselves and future children, one of them 26-year-old Sarah, from Manchester.
Scores of women said they had not found a suitable partner to start a family with, with many blaming modern dating culture.
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