FEWER young adults are tying the knot in the Maldon district - and there are also more singletons in older groups.

Some 71 per cent of the 6,735 people aged between 25 and 34 in the area had never been married, 2021 census figures show.

In the 2011 census, the figure was 59 per cent.

Just 27 per cent of people in the district of the same age were married, in a civil partnership, or separated while still married - down from 38 per cent in 2011.

Nationally, that age group saw the largest rise in people choosing not to marry.

But there were also more singletons among older groups. Among those aged 35 to 49, 27 per cent had never been married in the Maldon district - up from 20 per cent in 2011.

Nationally, marriage has become less popular among all age groups. Across England and Wales, 38 per cent of the population had never been married as of 2021, up from 34 per cent a decade ago and 26 per cent in 1991.