Birth and Death Rates

Examine the main trends in the birth and death rates in the UK since 1900

As the population of a country increases, there will be certain factors affecting the people of that country; the birth rate, and the death rate are two of the major demographic trends. Since 1900 the UK has changed greatly, as has the demography of the country.

The Birth rate - the number of live births per 1000 of the population per year originally was fairly high due to the fact that child labour was legal in Victorian England, and that because of the high risk of death in childbirth due to infection ect. The more children you conceived, the higher the chance that you would get a child this is a rise in the TMF (total fraternity rate). In the early 1900's the birth rate was 28.7 births per 1000. Since the start of the 20th century the birth rate has been in long term decline; in 2007 the birthrate was only 10.7.

The fall in birth rate can be explained by many reasons, one is that due to woman's rights, the position of women has greatly increased, meaning that the old stereotype stating that woman must look after the house and children ect is shunned; as some women may not want children due to increased educational opportunities and the fact that if they go on maternity leave they are at risk of losing their job - or having a large deduction of wages.

If woman get pregnant accidently, it is now easier and more socially acceptable to get access to abortions, and contraception - meaning that woman have more control of their fertility.

The fall in the birth rate is also because of the decline in the infant mortality rate (IMR), the IMR measures the number of infants who die before their first birthday, per 1000 babies born per year. A falling IMR means a fall in the birth rate because more children are surviving, so parents to not need to try again.

Due to the ban of child labour, many people have had much less children, because the children no longer benefit them financially, as the children are economically dependent for much longer. Parents are now also using child centeredness - childhood is now seen as a special time for individuals, and parents should focus on the quality of the children's life - meaning fewer children are conceived so