By Ian Jones
The number of births in England and Wales rose last year, the first increase since 2021, helped by a “notable” jump in babies born to fathers aged 60 and over.
Some 594,677 live births were registered in 2024, up 0.6% from 591,072 in 2023, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS).
Births remain at historically low levels, with 2024 ranking as the third lowest total since 1977.
But the small rise means the broad downwards trend seen in recent years has, for the time being, come to a halt.
The latest increase in births is not reflected across all parts of England, with five regions seeing a year-on-year fall, including a drop of 1.4% in the North East.
The largest jumps were in West Midlands, up 3.4%, and London, up 1.8%.
While England overall saw a rise of 0.7% in live births, Wales experienced a fall of 2.0%.
There was a “notable increase” in live births to fathers aged 60 and over, the ONS said.
The number jumped by 14%, from 942 births in 2023 to 1,076 in 2024.
By contrast, births to young mothers and fathers fell, continuing a long-term trend that has seen the average age of parents rise steadily for the last 50 years.
Babies born to mothers under the age of 20 dropped year on year by 4.6%, with a 2.4% fall for those aged 20 to 24, while those born to fathers under 20 fell by 0.5% and 3.2% respectively.
Greg Ceely, ONS head of population health monitoring, said: “In 2024, the annual number of births in England and Wales reverses the recent trend of declining births, recording the first increase seen since 2021.
“Despite this overall rise, the number of births to mothers under 30 fell, as people continue to put off having children until later in life.
“The largest decrease is seen amongst those under 20 years old, which fell by almost 5%, while the number of mothers aged 35-39 grew the most.
“A couple of other long-term trends are continuing, such as seeing around half of live births within marriage or civil partnership, and an increase in births to non-UK-born mothers.”