Milestones: journeying through modern life

Fewer women work full-time than men. At the age of 23, more than half of men are in full-time work (31 or more hours per week, including paid and unpaid over-time), compared with age 24 for women. There has been little change since 2011. The proportion of women in full-time work falls below half by age 31.

Women start full-time work later than men

Proportion of people in full-time employment (31 or more hours per week, including paid and unpaid over-time) by single year of age and sex in England and Wales, 2021

Download the data for proportion of people in full-time employment by age and sex [XLSX, 13KB]

The gap between the percentage of men and women in full-time employment increases sharply between age 25 and 35 when women are more likely to change their working pattern after having children. We explored the difference in men’s and women’s employment rates in further detail in our Diversity in the labour Market, England and Wales: Census 2021 article.

More women than men have gone to university since the late 1990s, and this gender gap has been generally getting bigger over time. This may explain why women tend to enter full-time work later. In 2022, 130 women were accepted to study at university for every 100 men.

More women go to university than men

Number of people accepted into UK universities through UCAS by sex, 1994-2022

Download the data for people accepted into UK universities by sex [XLSX, 11KB]

Leaving the family home is often thought of as one of the first markers of entering adulthood, but young people are doing so later than in the past. The age that more than half of people did not live with their parents increased from 21 years in 2011 to 24 years in 2021.

Half of people aged 24 years did not live with their parents in 2021, compared with half of people aged 21 years in 2011

Proportion of people living with their parents by single year of age in England and Wales, 2011 and 2021

Download the data for people living with their parents by single year of age [XLSX, 13KB]

More men live with their parents than women, 61% of adults living with their parents in Census 2021 were men.

The number of families with adult children living at home increased across all regions of England and Wales between 2011 and 2021, according to our article More adults living with their parents. The increase in London (25%) was around twice as large than in the rest of England (12%), and around five times the increase seen in Wales (5%).

Young people may live at home to avoid paying high housing costs and in some cases to save to buy a property. London was the least affordable region for buying a home and privately renting a property in 2022. Find out more in our Housing affordability and private rental affordability in England and Wales bulletins.

In 2021, the age by which half of people who lived in households in England and Wales were living with a partner was 28 years, unchanged since 2011. People living in households are those living outside of communal establishments such as halls of residence, care homes and prisons.

Half (50%) of people aged 28 years were living in a couple in 2021, down slightly from 53% in 2011. There has been a decrease in the percentages of people aged under 30 years living in a couple since 2011.

Of people aged 25 to 29 years who lived in a couple in 2021, 72% were not married or in a civil partnership, this has increased from 56% in 2011.

Fewer people were living in couples in 2021 than in 2011

Proportion of people in households living in a couple by single year of age and sex in England and Wales, 2011 and 2021

Download the data for households living as a couple [XLSX, 13KB]

Notes:

1. This includes people living with partners, spouses and civil partners.

The average age at which women in England and Wales have their first babies has been steadily increasing since the 1970s. In 1970 the average age that women had their first baby was 23. In 2020, it was 29.

The age of first-time mothers has been increasing steadily since 1970

Standardised mean age of first-time mothers, England and Wales, 1950 to 2020

Download the data for age of first-time mothers [XLSX, 13KB]

It is not possible to produce the average age of first-time fathers as fathers are not asked at birth registration if they have other children. The average age of a father (not just first-time fathers) in 2021 was 34, up from 30 years in 1973. The average age of a mother (not just first-time mothers) in 2021 was 31.

People starting families later in life could be contributing to the falling fertility rate (the average number of children per woman). The total fertility rate was 2.4 children per woman in 1970. This has reduced to 1.5 children in 2022.

In recent years, fertility rates have decreased across most age groups but increased for those aged 35 years and over. That is presented in our Births in England and Wales: 2021 and Birth characteristics in England and Wales: 2021 bulletins.

Women who were born in 1977 had an average of 1.9 children before they turned 46. This is the highest average since women born in 1962 but lower than their mothers’ generation. Read more in our Childbearing for women born in different years, England and Wales: 2021 and 2022 bulletin.

Lower fertility rates caused by having children at older ages could reduce the number of children born per woman. It is uncertain how many children women who are currently of childbearing age will have, but it is expected to continue to fall in the long term.

In the past, many people expected to get married before moving in with a partner or having children. It is now more common that couples live together and have children before entering a legal partnership, if they do so at all. This section focuses on marriages and excludes civil partnerships.

The median age at first marriage has been steadily increasing since the 1960s. For opposite sex couples married in 2020, the median age was 32 years for men and 30 years for women. For those entering into same-sex marriage, the median age was older, at 36 years for men and 32 years for women.

Both men and women are getting married at older ages

Median age at first marriage for opposite or same-sex couples in England and Wales, 1950-2020

Download the data for age at first marriage [XLSX, 14KB]

As well as getting married older, fewer people are getting married. In 2019, marriage rates had fallen to their lowest on record. For men, there were 18.6 marriages per 1,000 never-married men; for women, there were 17.2 marriages per 1,000 never-married women. In 2020, the number of marriages fell sharply, partly driven by the Covid-19 pandemic.

Increasing proportions of people in their fifties and sixties are never married. The percentage of people aged 50 to 54 who were never married increased from 14% in 2011 to 22% in 2021. Read more about this in our Marriage and civil partnership status in England and Wales in 2021 bulletin. 

In 2022, more than half of people owned their own home (either with a mortgage or outright) by age 36 years. This has increased from 32 years in 2004. The long-term trend shows an increase in the age that more than half of people own their home, although the short-term changes are less clear.

The proportion of people who own their own home has decreased since 2004

Proportion of people who own their home outright or with a mortgage by single year of age in the UK, 2004, 2012, 2017 and 2022

Download the data for proportion of homeowners in the UK by year [XLSX, 12KB]

House prices have increased faster than incomes, meaning that housing is less affordable now than in 2004, according to our Housing affordability in England and Wales: 2023 bulletin.

Despite house prices increasing faster than incomes between 2013 and 2022, there has not been a clear increase in the age that the majority of people own their home. However, longer mortgage terms and financial gifts or inheritance are becoming increasingly important in getting on the housing ladder.

Although there have been fluctuations in recent years in the way first-time buyers fund their deposits, the overall trend shows an increase in the proportion of people receiving help from friends and family.

In April 2022 to March 2023, 36% of recent first-time buyers (resident less than three years) used gifts from family or friends and 9% used inheritance. This is far more than received help 10 years before. In 2003 to 2004, 20% of first-time buyers (resident less than five years) used gifts from family or friends and 3% used inheritance.

This leaves people who do not receive financial gifts or inheritance at a disadvantage when trying to buy a home. Read more about first time buyers in the English Housing Survey Headline Report, 2022-23.

Over half (52%) of first-time buyers with a mortgage had a repayment period of 30 years in 2022-23. There has been no clear change to this figure in the last five years.

The percentage of people living in privately rented accommodation in England and Wales has gone up in the last decade.

The increase in private renting is greatest amongst household residents aged between 35 and 54. In 2021, 21% of this group lived in privately rented accommodation compared with 14% in 2011.

London has the highest percentages of people in households living in rented accommodation, with 27% in Census 2011 and 31% in 2021. London is the least affordable region to buy or rent a home, according to our Housing affordability in England and Wales: 2023 and Private rental affordability in England, Wales and Northern Ireland: 2022 bulletins.

In 2023, people aged 47 years had the highest average wage (gross median hourly earnings, including overtime), at £18.78 per hour. The age at which earnings peak has been rising, from 38 years in 2013, and 40 years in 2018.

While the age at which earnings peak has changed, the overall trends in earnings throughout a person’s working career have remained very similar. Young people earn the lowest hourly wage, people aged between 30 and 50 earn the most and median hourly earnings fall from around age 50 until retirement.

Whilst median earnings fall between age 50 and retirement, this does not mean that individuals’ pay will decrease. Higher earners may retire early, reducing the median wage of those remaining in employment, and people may change roles and hours worked.

The age that people have the highest average earnings increased to 47 years in 2023

Median hourly earnings (including overtime) of employees in the United Kingdom, adjusted for inflation, by single year of age, 2013, 2018 and 2023.

Download the data for hourly earnings by single year of age [XLSX, 13KB]

Despite more women studying at university, women’s hourly wage is lower than men’s at all ages over 20 years. Women’s median earnings peak at age 42 (£17.05), five years earlier than men’s at age 47 years (£20.81).

Men’s hourly wage is higher than women’s at nearly all ages, but the gap has narrowed since 2013

Median hourly earnings (including overtime) of employees in the United Kingdom, adjusted for inflation, by single year of age and sex, 2013 and 2023

Download the data for hourly earnings by single year of age and sex [XLSX, 13KB]

The gap between men and women’s hourly earnings became smaller between 2023 and 2013. For all employees (full-time and part-time) the gender pay gap was 14% in 2023 and 20% in 2013. The gap between men’s and women’s hourly earnings was smaller in 2023 than 2013 for all ages between 35 and 58. Read more in our Gender pay gap in the UK in 2023 bulletin.

There are also pay gaps between other groups, as explored in our Ethnicity pay gaps, UK and Disability pay gaps in the UK articles.

People are more likely to provide unpaid care in their 50s than at other ages. This includes giving help or support to parents, partners, other family or friends because of a long-term health condition or illness.

In Census 2021, of all people that provide unpaid care, more than a quarter (26%) are in their 50s. People are more likely to be providing unpaid care at age 59 than any other age.

More women than men provide unpaid care, with 12% of women aged 16 and over providing unpaid care compared with 8% of men. Women also spend more time doing unpaid housework whilst men spend more time doing paid work, according to our Time Use in the UK bulletin.

Women are more likely to provide unpaid care than men

Proportion of people providing unpaid care by single year of age and sex in England and Wales, 2011 and 2021

Download the data for people providing unpaid care by age and sex [XLSX, 18KB]

The proportion of people providing unpaid care has gone down from 13% in 2011 to 10% in 2021. This fall in unpaid care may be because of:

• Covid-19 restrictions which limited travel and household mixing
• a high number of deaths in the older population because of the pandemic
• changes to the question wording in Census 2021

Read more in our Unpaid care across England and Wales bulletin.

In 2022, more than half people owned their home outright at age 61, two years earlier than in 2004 (63 years). People aged over 60 years were less likely to own their own home outright in 2004 compared with 2022.

Longer mortgages (over 30 years) are becoming more available, and the age of first-time buyers is increasing. These changes could see the age at which people own their home outright rising in the future.

In 2022 to 2023 a higher proportion of homes were owned outright (35%) than with a mortgage (29%), according to the English Housing Survey. This has been true since 2013 to 2014. More information on people who own their home outright is available in the English Housing Survey Headline Report, 2022 to 23.

A greater proportion of people aged over 60 owned their homes outright 2022 than in 2004

Proportion of people who own their home outright by single year of age in England and Wales, 2004 and 2022

Download the data for people who own their home outright, by age [XLSX, 13KB]

As people are becoming parents later in life, people are also becoming grandparents later in the UK.

In the Understanding Society survey 2021 to 2022, more than half of people were grandparents by age 65, four years older than in 2011, when more than half of people were grandparents by 61.  

People are becoming grandparents later in life

Proportion of people with a grandchild outside of their household by single year of age in the UK, 2011 to 2012 and 2021 to 2022

Download the data for proportion of people with a grandchild by age [XLSX, 11KB]

Based on an Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) study in England, a third (33%) of families with children aged between 1 and 2 years used unpaid, informal childcare such as care from grandparents in 2019. Costs for a part-time nursery place for a child aged under 2 years grew by 60% between 2010 and 2021 – twice as fast as average earnings.  

The increasing age of grandparents may make it more challenging for them to provide care for grandchildren because of the increased likelihood of health problems. However, as the retirement age increases, older grandparents may be less likely than younger grandparents to need to choose between working and helping care for their grandchildren.

The age where more than half of people were retired increased from 64 in 2011 to 66 in 2021. ​

There has been a bigger increase in average retirement age for women (from 61 years in 2011, to 66 years in 2021) than for men (from 65 in 2011 to 66 in 2021). This is because the state pension age for women was increased from 60 to 66 during this time to be the same as that for men.

In 2011, a law allowing employers to force workers to retire at 65 was repealed, giving more people the choice to work past this age.

People retired at older ages in 2021 than in 2011

Proportion of people who were retired by single year of age and sex in England and Wales, 2011 and 2021

Download the data for people who were retired by single year of age and sex [XLSX, 16KB]

Despite people retiring later in 2021 compared with ten years before, the number of people aged over 50 years who stopped working has also increased since the COVID-19 pandemic, according to our Reasons for workers aged over 50 years leaving employment since the start of the coronavirus pandemic article.

Life expectancy from retirement at age 66

Women who are at retirement age (66 years) can be expected to live on average to 87, and men aged 66 years can be expected to live until 85. Women aged 66 have a 5.5% chance of living to 100, compared with a 3.1% chance for men.

Find our your projected life expectancy and chance to live to 100 using our life expectancy calculator.