New figures show births and the fertility rate in Oldham is falling as the national birth rate plummeted to a historic low which experts suggest could be due to the cost-of-living crisis.

Figures from the Office for National Statistics show there was an average of 1.85 live births per woman in Oldham in 2023 - down from 1.94 the year before.

The rate for England and Wales also fell to the lowest level since records began in 1938, at 1.44, with the biggest drops in overall total fertility in Wales (1.46 to 1.39) and the North West (1.53 to 1.46).

Get the latest news delivered straight to your inbox by signing up to The Oldham Times’ morning and evening newsletters as well as our breaking news alerts 

Meanwhile, London, the North East and the West Midlands saw the smallest decreases.

The fertility rate is defined as the average number of live children a group of women would have if they experienced age-specific fertility rates throughout their childbearing life.

The ONS said the fertility rate has declined most sharply for women aged between 20 and 24 and 25 and 29.

Live births in England and Wales also fell, with 591,072 registered last year - the lowest figure since 1977.

In Oldham, there were 2,987 births last year, down from 3,158 the year before.

Some experts have suggested the trend comes as people face uncertainty around the cost-of-living crisis as well as factors around difficulties in finding a partner and more people deciding not to have children.

Professor Melinda Mills, professor of demography and population health at the University of Oxford, said: "People are actively postponing or forgoing children due to issues related to difficulties in finding a partner, housing, economic uncertainty, remaining longer in education and particularly women entering and staying in the labour force."

She added: "Some individuals also actively make the choice to remain childfree.

"However, there is evidence that postponing having children to later ages when the partners are less able to conceive results in increases in involuntarily childlessness as well."

Dr Bassel Al Wattar, associate professor of reproductive medicine at Anglia Ruskin University, described the downward trend in birth rate as "worrying yet persistent".

He said it might be explained by the cost-of-living crisis, as well as a reduction in available NHS funding for fertility treatments such as IVF.

Has the cost-of-living crisis influenced your decision to have a baby? Email me your thoughts or other stories at Olivia.bridge@newsquest.co.uk