Divorces outnumbered marriages for the first time in 2020 after the government banned ceremonies during the Covid-19 pandemic
- Figures show 85,770 couples tied the knot in 2020, a 61 per cent drop on 2019
Divorces outnumbered marriages for the first time ever during lockdown, it has been revealed.
New figures show that just 85,770 couples tied the knot in 2020 after the Government banned wedding ceremonies for much of the year.
It represented a record 61 per cent drop on the 219,850 marriages across England and Wales in 2019, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said.
Between the end of March and start of July, when the most stringent stay at home order was in place, just 264 marriages took place – compared with 71,883 the previous year.
September became the more popular month for weddings, rather than August as is traditional, after receptions for up to 30 guests were allowed.
New figures show that just 85,770 couples tied the knot in 2020 after the Government banned wedding ceremonies for much of the year (stock photo)
And one of the most popular days to get married was Wednesday November 4 as 1,425 managed to get wed the day before the second national lockdown began.
As there were fewer Covid-era restrictions on relationships ending, although many family court cases were put on hold, it meant that divorces were more common than weddings.
There were 103,592 divorces granted in 2020 and a rate of 8.5 divorces per 1,000 married men and 8.6 per 1,000 married women, compared with 7.4 marriages per 1,000 men 7.0 marriages per married women.
Amanda Sharfman from the ONS said: ‘Restrictions related to the coronavirus pandemic have had a marked impact on the number, timing and characteristics of marriages taking place in 2020 compared with previous years.
‘Marriage rates in 2020 have more than halved compared with 2019 and have fallen to their lowest on record.
‘While divorce proceedings were also impacted by the pandemic, for the first time, marriage rates were lower than divorce rates.
‘Future analysis will show whether there is a rise in marriage rates in 2021 as restrictions were lifted.’
There were 103,592 divorces granted in 2020 and a rate of 8.5 divorces per 1,000 married men and 8.6 per 1,000 married women, compared with 7.4 marriages per 1,000 men 7.0 marriages per married women (stock photo)
Detailed analysis showed that older couples were more likely to go ahead with slimmed-down weddings during lockdown than younger ones, who may have been more keen to wait for their big day.
The biggest fall in marriage rates in 2020 was among men and women aged between 25 and 29.
‘This could reflect younger couples choosing to wait until coronavirus restrictions had lifted,’ the ONS said.
Harry Benson, of the Marriage Foundation think-tank, said: ‘These figures from the ONS are far worse than even we had feared. The draconian restrictions on weddings during lockdown, that even included an outright ban for part of the year, have had a devastating effect on British family life.
‘A 61 per cent drop in weddings was comfortably the worst in Western Europe.’
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