Decrease in birth rate

[MsJupiter]

I read this news story earlier: BBC link

It details a surprise drop in birth rate / average number of children and an increase in age of having first child to 30.

Apparently, "This may be due to a number of factors such as increased participation in higher education, increased female participation in the labour force, the increasing importance of a career, the rising opportunity costs of childbearing, labour market uncertainty, housing factors and instability of partnerships."

I suppose not all those factors solely relate to women. But this kind of news item never seems to mention the fact that it is often due to men's choices as well as women's - and sometimes above women's. The ideal lifestyle touted to men these days is the eternal playboy, never settling down, resisting the hormonal screeches of ovary-twanging women. Yet somehow when the childbirth rate goes down, it's because of these damn career women.

I say this as an older mother who did choose to delay, but I know lots of women who would have done it earlier, given a willing partner.

Yes going from mn threads women want more DCs and to have them sooner than their partners.

I think the phrase 'instability of partnerships' is aimed at the male element.

It may have been the biggest fall for ages but the birth rate has risen every year since 2001. So maybe things are now going back to normal.

Appparantly immigration from eu countries was largely responsible for the rising birth rate. So there was a big influx of Eastern European women of child bearing age who have now gone back to Eastern Europe or are older now. I believe immigration has slowed down??

My SIL and her husband have been together since they were 18, but didn't have their first child until they were 29 because I don't think he could countenance it before then - I think that was probably a compromise between 27 and 35.

But then my DH says there is no way he would have been ready to be a dad at 30 and waited until the grand old age of 43!

If I remember correctly, in Scotland, I think there are 60,000 more children in primary schools than secondary schools (source: SQA figure that I am too lazy to check). There are two new high schools being built near me, and my grandchildren's classes are full.

So why should the situation be so different up here? (Or am I wrong? Always a possibility ...)

Broadly speaking I think there is an inverse correlation between womens education attainment and birth rates.

Since women still bear the greater burden of having children it makes sense that many will choose not to if there are better options for them.
Generally speaking birth rates in developed countries are falling and we will soon have a population with many elderly and few young people.

its probably also because of a reduction in teen pregnancies but let's focus on 'selfishness' .

25-35 (giving average of 30) is about the perfect age to have a baby I'd have thought.