The partnership context of first parenthood – and how it varies by parental class and birth cohort in the United Kingdom

BACKGROUNDFamily background strongly shapes when and how people have their first child, with potential consequences for inequality.In the United Kingdom, non-marital births have risen, yet little is known about how parental class drives these patterns. OBJECTIVEThis study investigates how parental occupational class influences first-time parenthood within marriage or cohabitation, or outside any union.It further examines changes in these relationships across birth cohorts from 1940 to 1990.