Radical with Amol Rajan The Decline of Marriage: Why We Need to Prioritise Family Life (Ed Davies)
Mar 5, 2026
Ed Davies, research director at the Centre for Social Justice who studies family stability, explains why marriage rates have collapsed and how that links to delayed adulthood, rising individualism and class differences. He discusses the social and welfare consequences, debates whether marriage can be modernised, and proposes policy and cultural fixes to rebuild family stability.
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Extended Childhood And The Odyssey Years
- Young adulthood has been extended: average marriage age rose from ~25 historically to 33 today, producing a decade of experimentation before commitments.
- Longer education, university and cultural emphasis on autonomy delayed family formation and ‘adult’ roles.
Davies Married Young On His Mother's Advice
- Ed Davies married young after meeting his wife at university and recalls his mother's blunt advice to 'pin that down' because he wouldn't do better.
- He uses this personal story to illustrate how cultural parenting advice about early marriage has vanished.
Marriage Varies Sharply By Income And Ethnicity
- Family structure strongly correlates with socioeconomic status: only ~20% of children in the bottom income quintile have married parents versus ~85% in the top quintile.
- Non-white families show higher marriage rates within poorer quintiles, affecting educational outcomes.