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Fertility

Introduction

Fertility rates measure the number of children born per woman of childbearing age (15 to 44 years). There are several ways of measuring fertility and many factors that influence the birth of a child. The general fertility rate (GFR) and total fertility rate (TFR) are two widely used to measure the levels of fertility in a population and trends over time.

Key findings

General fertility rate

The general fertility rate (GFR) is the total number of live births per 1,000 women of reproductive age (15 to 44 years) in a population per year. This is a more refined way to measure fertility in a population, rather than crude birth rate because the GFR accounts for the female population aged 15 to 44 years as the denominator, rather than the whole population. Despite this, differences in GFR may be due to underlying variations in the age structure of the female population over time or across populations of interest.

  • The Lancashire-12 area has a GFR of 49.8 for the calendar year 2024 (England=49.0), increase from 49.1 in 2023 (England=49.9 in 2023).

  • At district level, Pendle (58.8), Hyndburn (58.5), Burnley (57.3), Preston (53.7) and Rossendale (51.4) have a higher GFR than England (2024).

  • Both unitary authorities (Blackburn with Darwen=58.2, Blackpool=52.6) have a higher GFR than England (2024).

Total fertility rate

The total fertility rate (TFR) is the average number of live children that a group of women would bear if they experienced the age-specific fertility rates of the calendar year in question, throughout their childbearing lifespan.

  • The recent trend shows that over the past ten years (2015-2024), in line with the national and regional picture, Lancashire-12 area has seen a decrease in its TFR, from 1.85 in 2014 to 1.49 in 2024 (England=1.79 in 2014 and 1.42 in 2024).

  • At district level, Pendle (1.82), Hyndburn (1.73), Burnley (1.71), Rossendale (1.55) and Preston (1.53) have a higher TFR than the Lancashire-12 TFR (2024).

For more information about births across Lancashire-14, please see our registered births and deaths page. You may also be interested in our morality pages.

Page updated August 2026