Same-sex couples formed 7,169 civil partnerships (3,824 male and 3,345 female) in the UK in 2008, a fall of 18 per cent compared with 2007. There were 180 civil partnership dissolutions granted in the UK in 2008, of which 64 were to male couples and 116 to female couples.
The number of civil partnerships in England and Wales in 2008 fell by 18 per cent and 4 per cent to 6,276 and 282. In Scotland and Northern Ireland, civil partnerships fell by 24 per cent and 23 per cent to 525 and 86 respectively. On average, 416 partnerships were formed in the UK each month between January and March 2008, rising to 732 between April and September and falling to 510 between October and December. The total number of partnerships formed since the Civil Partnership Act came into force in December 2005 up to the end of 2008 is 33,956.
As in 2007, the London Borough of Westminster (234 male and 48 female partnerships) and Brighton and Hove Unitary Authority (158 male and 116 female partnerships) were the areas with the largest numbers of civil partnership registrations in 2008.
Although more men than women formed same-sex civil partnerships in the UK in 2008, the proportion of all partnerships that were male decreased to 53 per cent, compared with 55 per cent in 2007. More men than women formed partnerships in England (54 per cent male) while the situation was reversed in Scotland and in Wales (47 and 49 per cent male respectively). Northern Ireland had exactly the same number of male and female partnerships.
Male civil partners in the UK remained, on average, older than female civil partners in 2008, although the average age at formation fell for both sexes. For men, the average age fell from 43 in 2007 to 42 in 2008 and for women, from 41 to 40.
Similar to 2007, 11 per cent of men and 21 per cent of women forming a civil partnership in the UK in 2008 had been in a previous marriage or civil partnership.
The Civil Partnership Act 2004 came into force on 5 December 2005 in the UK, the first day couples could give notice of their intention to form a civil partnership. The Act enables same-sex couples aged 16 and over to obtain legal recognition of their relationship. The first day that couples could normally form a partnership was 19 December 2005 in Northern Ireland, 20 December 2005 in Scotland and 21 December 2005 in England and Wales.
To obtain a civil partnership dissolution in the UK, a couple must have been in either a registered civil partnership or a recognised foreign relationship for 12 months.
Sources: Office for National Statistics, General Register Office for Scotland, Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency.
Notes: Figures for civil partnership formations for Northern Ireland and the UK for 2008 are provisional.
The figures relate only to civil partnerships taking place in the constituent countries of the UK. They do not include civil partnerships of UK residents taking place abroad but will include non UK residents who form a partnership in the UK.
Figures for civil partnership formations in England and Wales are based on date of formation. Figures for Scotland and Northern Ireland are based on date of registration.
Data on civil partnership formations are based on area of formation and not area of residence.
40 people forming a civil partnership in the UK in 2008 had been in a previous civil partnership which had been terminated by dissolution or death.
All figures for civil partnership dissolutions for 2008 are provisional.
Data on civil partnership dissolutions are based on country of dissolution and not country of residence.
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Data:Civil Partnerships (provisional)