Seventeen year high in the number of babies born

In total 25,600 live births were registered in Northern Ireland in 2008, 1,200 (5%) more than in 2007 and the highest number recorded since 1991.

The latest rise is the sixth consecutive annual increase, with births having increased by 10% since 2006 and by 20% since the 2002 low.

These findings are contained in provisional 2008 birth statistics released today by the Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency (NISRA).

Throughout the 1990s the number of babies born fell as more women in their twenties delayed having children. Today those women are now having babies in their thirties with the birth rate of women in their thirties having increased by nearly a quarter over the last decade.

Increased migration to Northern Ireland has also had an impact on the number of children born. Last year 2,300 babies were born to mothers who were born themselves outside the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland, a three-fold increase from 2001 when 700 such babies were recorded. In large part this increase is accounted for by the 1,100 babies born in Northern Ireland last year to mothers born in the eight new Central and Eastern European EU countries; this compares with 10 such babies in 2001.

A NISRA spokesperson said: “The number of babies born in Northern Ireland has now risen each year since 2002. In 2008 there were 25,600 babies registered an increase of 20% from the 2002 low. Today we are seeing more women in their thirties having children. In addition more women have been moving to Northern Ireland to live and are having children here.”

Further more detailed statistics are available in the full release at the Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency [NISRA] website

Summary In 2008, there were 25,631 births registered to mothers resident in Northern Ireland. This is a 5% increase on the 2007 figure of 24,451 births. However the number of births registered in 2008 remains below that observed in the mid-1980s when about 27,000 births were registered annually; Births of 13,204 baby boys and 12,427 baby girls were registered in 2008; In 2008 a total of 10,988 births (43%) were to women becoming mothers for the first time, while 8,377 births (33%) were to women having their second child and 4,041 births (16%) were to women having their third child. Only 9% became mothers for at least the fourth time; and Just over 100 babies were born on Wednesday 17 September, the largest number of births on any single day in 2008. The most common day of the week to have a baby was Wednesday, accounting for 16% of all births. Markedly fewer babies were born on Saturdays (11% of all births) and Sundays in 2008 (10% of all births).

Mother's age Almost half (49%) of all births registered in 2008 were to mothers aged 30 or over. This is a significant increase from thirty years ago when around 31% of births were to older mothers. This indicates that women are delaying child-bearing to later in life – a trend seen across the developed world; and The number of births to teenage mothers has fallen in recent years. In 2008 there were 1,426 births to teenage mothers, a small increase on the 1,405 births in 2007, but a decrease of more than 20% from the recent high of 1,791 such births in 1999.

Country of birth of mother In 2008, just under half (48%) of mothers not born in Northern Ireland were either born elsewhere in the United Kingdom or in the Republic of Ireland (2,189 mothers). Births to mothers born outside the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland have risen markedly in recent years, from 586 such births in 1998 to 2,347 births last year; and Within these figures there has been a large increase in births to mothers born in the eight countries that joined the EU in 2004 – the A8 countries. Around 10 babies were born to A8 mothers in 2001 compared to nearly 1,100 such births in 2008.

irths outside marriage Last year, 39% of all registered births occurred outside marriage – a small increase on the 2007 figure (38%) and the highest proportion on record. This compares with one in seventeen births (6%) occurring outside marriage in 1978; and The percentage of births outside marriage differs across Northern Ireland. Last year over half of all births in Belfast (57%) and Derry (50%) Local Government Districts occurred outside marriage. In contrast under one quarter of births in Magherafelt and Omagh (both 24%) Local Government Districts occurred outside marriage.

Births by area

Dungannon and Magherafelt Local Government Districts had the highest birth rate of all the Local Government Districts in 2008 with 16.5 births per 1,000 population while the lowest birth rate was in Larne Local Government District at 10.7 births per 1,000 population.

Notes to Editors:

1. This information can also be accessed on the NISRA website at Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency [NISRA] website
2. Birth figures have been compiled from returns to local registrars. All 2008 statistics are provisional until final figures are published in the Annual Report of the Registrar General. The results are based on analysis of all births registered within the 2008 calendar year and some births may have occurred prior to this registration year. Rates for 2008 data are calculated on the projected home population as at 30 June 2008.
3. All media inquiries should be directed to DFP Communications Office: telephone 028 9052 7374, fax: 028 9052 7149.Out of office hours please contact the Duty Press Officer via pager number 076 9971 5440 and your call will be returned.
4. Further information on the statistics provided in this publication can be obtained from NISRA Customer Services at:
   Telephone: 028 9034 8160
   Fax: 028 9034 8161
   E-mail: census.nisra@dfpni.gov.uk