Wirral lockdown baby boom revealed by study analysing national births data

Wirral has seen a massive surge in births during the pandemic.

Birth registrations in the Merseyside borough were up by 78% between December 2020 and June 2021, when compared to December 2019 and June 2020.

The numbers were produced in a study by Reassured which analysed national births data and combined it with local register office figures to see how lockdown baby numbers compared with those pre-pandemic, as well as where in the UK the biggest 'booms' in births were.

Of all the boroughs across Merseyside, Wirral's increase of 78% was the biggest and the thirteenth highest in the whole country.

There were nearly a quarter of a million (222,409) 'Covid babies' conceived during the various lockdowns and born in the UK since December 2020, with June 2020 the peak month for conception, new research has found.

March 2021 saw the highest number of 'Covid baby' births during the pandemic, with 58,409 newborns registered across the UK.

Working back nine months, June 2020 came out as the month when the most 'Covid babies' were conceived.

According to the data, March 23, 2021, was a peak date for newborns; exactly nine months after Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced an easing of lockdown rules on June 23, 2020.

Late March 2020, when the first national lockdown began, was also a peak time for conception, with a higher-than-normal birth rate reported nine months later in December 2020 and January 2021 (47,823 and 47,500 respectively).

A spokesperson for Reassured said: "With all Covid-19 restrictions now lifted, we're finally able to look back and explore any more positive outcomes of such a challenging time.

"Our analysis shows many took the big step of having a child in lockdown, with nearly a quarter of a million new-born babies registered by parents from December 2020 – nine months after the restrictive Covid-19 measures were put in place.

"We always recommend that new parents consider investing in insurance to ensure their children have financial protection if the worst should happen.

"After so many difficult months, a little bit of extra reassurance for the future can go a long way."