Better benefits and NHS care sees Polish women more likely to give birth in the UK - 17th March 2011

A new survey has shown that Polish women living in the UK are more likely to have children than those staying in their home country.

The figures, from the Centre for International Relations, showed that Polish-born women had a fertility rate second only to Pakistani women with 18,000 children born to them in 2009 alone, giving them a fertility rate of 2.48 compared to British women’s 1.84. The increased birth rate means that there are now 130,000 Polish children under the age of 14 living in the UK.

Krystyna Iglicka, from the Centre for International Relations, said that the NHS and the better benefits system available in the UK were the main reasons why families are choosing to come to this country rather than stay in Poland, though Polish women would have the disadvantage of a lack of support network if grandparents, aunts etc were still living in Poland.