Pathways to Higher Order Fertility in the UK: A Couple-Level Perspective on Childcare Cost and Company Support

Termin

28.10.2025, 10:00 – 11:30 Uhr, in Präsenz, Online-Teilnahme möglich

Referent

Giovanni Minchio (Universitá di Trento, Italien)

Zusammenfassung

How does the experience of first parenthood influence the likelihood of having a second child? Do childcare cost and company-based welfare matter for the transition to a second child? Given the high costs of childbearing, employer-provided welfare, such as, childcare benefits, internal flexibility, and additional pay on top of statutory maternity leave pay, likely matters in helping parents to balance employment and family responsibilities; however, their roles remain underexplored. Most research takes an individual-level perspective; yet, a couple-level approach matters for understanding how the association varies based on which partner is the welfare recipient. Moreover, we address how these associations change at different levels of education and Socio-Economic Classification of each partner.

To contribute to addressing these gaps in knowledge, this study examines how childcare cost and company work-family arrangements facilitate transitions to second parity – and for which couples – leveraging data from the first five waves of the Millennium Cohort Study to take a couple-level perspective. We analyse the factors associated with the likelihood (and timing) of the transition to second births, focusing on the influence of partners’ family-work arrangements and company-level welfare and flexibility.

Early results show that socio-economic factors are key predictors of fertility intentions and the transition to a second child. Mothers’ use of company-level flexibility is associated with higher probabilities of having a second parity, while no association is found for father’s use. Company welfare practices show no direct link, but couples who pay for childcare exhibit lower second birth probabilities.

Vortragssprache

Englisch