Norfolk mum says societal change needed to tackle slowing birth-rate
Research suggests the average couple with young children has seen their costs rising by £1000 a month
A mum from Norfolk is telling us societal change is needed, to make it easier of couples have children, so the national birth-rate doesn't continue to fall.
It comes after research from national insurance company Royal London found that increasing numbers of people aged between 18 and 34 are putting off having children due to rising costs.
At the same time, the average couple with young children has seen their costs rising by £1000 a month.
"It's well documented how things like childcare bills are rising"
Rebecca Wright lives near Norwich and campaigns for better maternity rights:
"We've got a certain level of population that needs to be maintained to ensure we have enough staff in the future to staff things like critical services, so with the birth-rate on the decline in UK, that's only going to make that task more difficult.
"It's well documented how things like childcare bills are rising.
"Then there are other costs in things like food.
"It's a combination which makes it quite a stretch to provide a decent standard of living."
What is the UK's birth-rate and how's it changed over time?
2017- 1.71 (children per woman)
2018- 1.65 (children per woman)
2019- 1.59 (children per woman)
2020- 1.53 (children per woman)
2021- 1.55 (children per woman)
2022- 1.49 (children per woman)
Source: Office for National Statistics