Marriage is better after all
New research by The Marriage Foundation analyses data from Britain's largest household survey, Understanding Society in 2009-2010. It looks at the relationship between getting married and staying together as children grow up.
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1,783 mothers with children aged 14-15 were included in the survey. 1,155 were married before the birth of their child, 250 married after the birth of their child, 232 began as a couple but never married and 146 did not have partners at the time of birth.
Altogether 58% of the couples remained intact as two parents families.
- 76% of the parents who married before their child's birth remained together
- 44% of the parents who married after their child’s birth remained together
- 31% of the parents who never married stayed together
Mothers living as an unmarried couple when their child is born are far more likely to split up, regardless of whether they married later on or not, compared to mothers who married before their child was born.
This information highlights the importance of marriage in giving couples the best chance of staying together.
