... but ‘silver splits’ are up

WHILE divorce rates for most couples have fallen, they have risen among older ‘silver splitters’, the ONS figures showed.

In 1993 – a peak year for divorce – 68 out of every 10,000 married women aged 50-54 in England and Wales were divorced.

But last year the divorce rate for married women in the same age range was 92 in 10,000. There was a similar increase in divorce rates for women aged 5559 and a smaller increase among over-60s.

ONS statistician Nicola Haines suggested that the rising rates among older couples may be ‘due to the fact we have an increasingly ageing population and people are getting married later in life’.