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More women than men tied the knot in same-sex marriages in the three months after the ceremonies were legalised in England and Wales, official statistics have shown.
Between March and the end of June, 56 per cent of gay weddings were held between women while 44 per cent were between men.
According to figures released by the Office of National Statistics (ONS) 1,409 same-sex weddings took place during the period.
Of these, 95 were held within the first three days of the legislation being introduced on March 29.
There were 351 same-sex weddings in April, 465 in May and 498 in June.
The figures for gay marriages in July have not yet been released.
The numbers differ dramatically from the number of civil partnerships (CPs) that were recorded in the three months following their introduction in 2005.
During that period, 4,579 CPs were entered into – about one third of which were between women and two thirds between men.
However, under current legislation these CPs cannot yet be “converted” to marriage, suggesting that when the law changes later this year the relative number of same-sex weddings may increase.
James Brown from JMW Solicitors, told the Daily Telegraph: ‘As with civil partnerships, it appears to be women who are attracted more to the idea of formalising same-sex relationships and they tend to do so at a younger age than men as well.’
The ONS figures show that the average age at which women married in the three month period following march’s legislation was 37, while men were on average 39-years-old.
Mr Brown, a partner in family law at the firm, said: ‘That might be because it provides them with stability in a relationship as they’re reaching the average age at which women tend to have children.’
