Fewer people than ever in Britain are opting to marry, according to a new survey, prompting concerns for the wellbeing of children.
The findings by the Marriage Foundation, reveal that in 2012, just 59% of middle income couples with children opted to formalise their unions, a figure which compares to 84% of the same category in 1994. Middle income couples are identified as those earning between £21,000 and £30,000 annually.
Prior to the 1990s, the researchers point out, the drift from traditional marriage was largely confined to the lower income bracket, but it is now clearly an increasing trend across the socio-economic spectrum. The research suggests also that only the highest income earners remain relatively immune to the trend, with 87% of couples in this category being married.
Voicing concern over the impact of the clear shift from marriage, Harry Benson, director of research at the Marriage Foundation told The Daily Mail that the survey findings had serious implications for children in terms of family breakdown. He pointed out that while cohabiting couples make up just 19% of parents in Britain, they account for 50% of all family breakdowns, pointing towards a strengthening of familial stability through the institution of marriage.
Acknowledging that “there are cohabiting couples who discuss their future, make the commitment and succeed in staying together”, he added that “they are unfortunately rare”.
Sir Paul Coleridge, a former family courts judge who established the Marriage Foundation, stated that over the course of his judicial career, he had personally witnessed a surge in children passing through the system, as a result of failed cohabitation. Unveiling the foundation’s research, he said it is “very concerning that two of the largest sections of society are increasingly turning away from marriage”.
The analysis by the Marriage Foundation was based on data from the Government’s Family Resources Survey and the General Household Survey.
View the Marriage Foundation report at: www.marriagefoundation.org.uk
View the Marriage Foundation report at: www.marriagefoundation.org.uk
