UK fertility rate drops by 18.8% in 12 years

I don't know why this is being touted as a bad thing. In coverage about all the issues with aging population, they talk about this being a bottleneck that will ease off as the birth rate goes down, so why is anyone trying to keep it up? Especially as the actually population hasn't declined due to net migration. It doesn't make sense to want to keep pumping babies out at the same rate, as though British born babies are needed to sustain at the high levels of the last couple of generations when all was that bit better.

Expense. We’d love a third child but simply cannot afford it.

Housing crisis mainly imo. Takes too long to get on the housing ladder. Rent or mortgage also takes up too big a percentage of people's salary.... making other things unaffordable

Cost of living, especially childcare costs.

Leaving it later to start a family (partially due to the above - saving for house, waiting until career is more advanced)

Also taking longer before being ready to settle down - difficulty with socialising during and post Covid, rise of online dating apps filled with ... less than honest men perhaps not as keen to settle down as profiles might suggest.

Widespread press coverage of issues with education system

Widespread press coverage of issues around accessing decent medical care - dentist, GP, and let's not forget the awful things coming out about maternity care in certain areas.

For some, concerns over the climate change - is it fair to bring children into this world? etc

General disillusionment with society.

But for most, sheer practicalities based around ££££££.

Housing and childcare
Plus mixed care. Some people get good healthcare, others are not so lucky.

House prices! Needing two incomes to purchase a house.

Low wages, high childcare costs.

Chronic illnesses afflicting people at a younger age.

Internet and changes in way people communicate i.e things have moved online, less face-to-face contact have made people more introverted, more likely to be single, unable to save for housing.

People don’t feel the need to populate the world no more, people find it’s a depressing world - climate change, wars, austerity etc.

The expense. In my home country childcare is heavily invested in and almost free. So you have better trained early childhood practitioners, better practitioner to child ratio and you pay a drop in the ocean of what it costs here. Houses are extremely expensive now compared to the prices (and wages) of my parents generation. The time when you’re fertile is the time when you need to be saving for a house. Unless you have parents who will help many people prioritise buying a house over having a child.

The social housing has been sold off and not replenished so there are no properties for young families who want to save to buy their own home.