FEWER and fewer couples are tying the knot in the Bolton area.

And soon the number of unmarried people living together will outnumber those who are wed.

Registry records show there were 1,899 Bolton weddings in 1985 - but 10 years later only 1,291 couples exchanged wedding vows.

It means that during a 10 year period there have been a third fewer weddings in the town, a trend which mirrors a nationwide reduction in nuptials.

Predictions from the Government Actuary - which guides policy on housing and social security - claim that in 12 years time less than half the adult population will be married.

It would be the first time since census records began in 1801 that those who are living together, are divorced or have never married, outnumber those who are married.

Reduction

And yesterday one cleric admitted he was conducting fewer marriage ceremonies at his church. But the Rev Simon Tatton-Brown, of St Bartholomew's CE Church in Westhoughton, also believes the reduction may be because people no longer register their relationships.

He said: "We had about 20 weddings at St Bartholomew's in 1998 which is fewer than we had 10 years ago but still more than in comparable parishes.

Stable

"Couples do still come to church, asking for a church wedding. But I have observed an increase in the number of couples wanting to celebrate their marriage a number of years after starting living together as husband and wife.

"These people are taking what they are doing very seriously and that's to be encouraged.

"I'm aware that a lot of people are living together in a stable relationship without having registered it either in a church or register office."

Statistics which have just been published also show that, nationally, two in every five marriages are expected to fail and people will be older when they exchange their vows.

The shock news comes a year after the Government proposed a series of measures to support family life.

A spokesman for Bolton's marriage guidance counselling Relate confirmed nearly 1,000 couples sought their advice last year, as divorces doubled in the last 25 years.

She added: "The majority of adults continue to value the institution of marriage. But is seems that sustaining a lifetime commitment to one partner has become more difficult in recent years."

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