Only a quarter of millennials who want children are trying for them

Two fifths of 32-year-olds in England want children – or more children, if they are already parents – but only one in four of them are actively trying to conceive.

A new report, published today by the UCL Centre for Longitudinal Studies, shows that more than half of this generation have already become parents, and half of those without children would like to start a family.

The findings reveal that not feeling ready, financial pressures, career considerations and not having a suitable partner are the main reasons millennials are not currently trying to have children or add to their family.

Lead author, Dr Alina Pelikh (UCL Centre for Longitudinal Studies) said: “These findings highlight the challenges this generation faces as they weigh up their childbearing plans in their early thirties. While those without children may be navigating the complexities of finding a partner and establishing their careers before parenthood, parents are grappling with the realities of balancing existing family and financial responsibilities with the prospect of having more children.

“While parents will naturally have many reasons for deciding on the timing and spacing of their children, it is likely that current cost-of-living pressures, with rising housing and childcare expenses, are also shaping the environment in which this group is making fertility decisions.”

What the researchers looked at

The researchers analysed data from more than 7,200 millennials in England, who were born in 1989-90 and whose lives are being followed by the Next Steps study. They examined information collected from study participants at age 32 about their plans to start a family or to have more children. More than 2,000 participants from this group also reported their reasons for postponing having children. At this age, 54% had at least one child.

Among those who were already parents, over a quarter (27%) wanted to have more children, but just one in four of this group were trying to conceive. Among those who had not had a child by this age, half said they want to become parents in the future. However, of this group only one in four were currently trying for a child. Just over one in 10 (12%) of those who had not had children were certain they would never want to.

Financial pressures

The researchers then looked at the reasons why people who wanted (more) children were not currently trying to conceive. Participants could choose multiple reasons why they were not trying for a child, with not feeling ready being the most common (46%), followed by financial reasons (28%), not having a suitable partner (24%) and because of work or study (22%).

A quarter of people who said that they did not feel ready also reported financial and work reasons as barriers to having children, suggesting economic circumstances may be playing a role in whether 32-year-olds feel ready to start or grow their families.

Differences across society

The findings also revealed that people’s childbearing decisions differed depending on their education level, sex and whether or not they were already parents. Overall, individuals with a university degree were more likely to report not feeling ready than those without degrees (53% vs 39%). They were also more likely to report financial (31% vs 26%) and work reasons (24% vs 21%), compared to their peers without degrees. In contrast, individuals without a degree were more likely to cite not having a suitable partner (26% vs 21%), compared to individuals with a degree.

Men and women gave similar reasons for not currently trying for children, although concerns about finances and their own work or study were more likely to put off women from having (more) children than men (45% vs 40%). Notably, more than twice as many men than women (11% vs 5%) reported that their partner’s work was the reason they were not currently trying.

Parents were more likely than those without children to mention not feeling ready (52% vs 43%) and financial concerns (30% vs 27%) as the main reasons for not currently trying to have another child. In contrast, those without children were more likely than parents to cite not having a partner (32% vs 11%) and work or study (25% vs 17%) as reasons for postponing having a child.

Dr Pelikh added: “At age 32, many respondents in our study may still intend to have children, just later than previous generations. Our findings provide evidence that financial and employment constraints are viewed by many as major challenges and key reasons for postponing parenthood. This is of particular interest given that easing the financial burden of childcare is a priority for policymakers across the political spectrum.

“However, such measures alone may not fully alleviate the economic uncertainty that can deter people from having children. Previous research has highlighted the persistent gender pay gap and stalling of women’s career progression after childbirth, underscoring the need for additional policies and workplace reforms to better accommodate working parents and, particularly, women’s careers.”

Media coverage of this research

Daily Mail – Only a quarter of millennials who say they want children are actively trying to get pregnant, research reveals

The Independent – One in four millennials keen to have children ‘say finances are putting them off’

Further information

Fertility intentions and postponed parenthood: initial findings from Next Steps at age 32, by Alina Pelikh and Alice Goisis is available on the CLS website.

For more information or to speak to the researchers involved, please contact:

Ryan Bradshaw, UCL Centre for Longitudinal Studies
T: +44 (0)207 612 6516
E: r.bradshaw@ucl.ac.uk

Meghan Rainsberry, UCL Centre for Longitudinal Studies
T: +44 (0)207 612 6530
E: m.rainsberry@ucl.ac.uk

Next Steps has followed the lives of around 16,000 people in England, born in 1989-90, since secondary school. The study collects information about cohort members’ education and employment, economic circumstances, family life, physical and emotional health and wellbeing, social participation and attitudes. Next Steps was established in 2004 by the UK Department for Education. Since 2015, the study has been managed by the UCL Centre for Longitudinal Studies and funded by the Economic and Social Research Council. Data from the latest survey, the Next Steps Age 32 Sweep are now available for researchers to download from the UK Data Service. www.cls.ucl.ac.uk/next-steps

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