Fertility Rates
• The General Fertility Rate (GFR) is the total number of live births in a year per 1,000 women of reproductive age, which for these figures is defined as 15 to 44.
• The Dudley GFR closely followed the England rate between 2001 and 2011, with both showing an increase in fertility.
• In 2012 the rate in Dudley increased to 67.7 live births per 1,000 women, taking it above the England rate of 64.9, and has remained higher every year since.
• Over the last two years rates for both Dudley and England have fallen, with the latest figures from 2018 being 62.7 and 59.2 respectively.
Fertility Rate, Dudley Compared to England
Fertility Rates by Age of Mother
• GFR by age of mother shows the highest fertility rates are in the age groups 25 to 29 years and 30 to 34 years.
• The lowest fertility rates are in the age groups 40 to 44 years.
• In the age groups under 20 and 20 to 24 the rates indicate a decreasing trend in fertility.
• It can be seen that rates in younger ages are decreasing and in older ages are increasing.