Kids Starting School? Watch out for Divorce Danger Signals!

Back to School

Divorce rates may still be highest among couples in their late 20s … but it is often when children start school that the real cracks begin to show.

Latest figures show that for the fourth consecutive year, both men and women in their late 20s had the highest divorce rates in England and Wales. Some experts believe this is partly explained by couples starting a family and the dramatic change in lifestyle a young baby can bring.

However, Lyn Ellins, a family law specialist with Swindon law firm, Charles Lucas & Marshall says that from her experience of advising divorcing couples over the last 30 years, divorce is far more likely to happen when children start school and the couple’s expectations of marriage start to diverge.

“There is often resentment on the part of the husband if the wife shows no real interest in going back to work,” says Lyn. “She has had five or six years to establish a new lifestyle, centred around the home, friends and children - which to the husband, looks very cosy and enjoyable.

“The kids start school and financial reality kicks in. The husband, who is invariably the income-earner, becomes resentful that he is the one with all the financial responsibility. It is also quite difficult and daunting for women to find a job after many years out of the workplace and this also causes tension within the marriage.”

Lyn Ellins believes this is a major reason for divorce in Swindon because more women have the option of taking time out of work to raise young children because their husbands are on high incomes.

“Children starting school can trigger a real crisis point because women have more opportunities to do new things – and at the same time, a resentful husband is more inclined to start looking at nice, ‘shiny’ workmates in a new way.”

For further information please contact Lyn Ellins on 01635 521212 or lyn.ellins@clmlaw.co.uk.