STRICT coronavirus lockdown measures and guidance to 'stay home' over the last year have caused a spike in the number of couples considering divorce in Wirral, according to figures out today. 

The 2019/2020 data from law firm Jackson Lees highlights June and July as having the most notable year-on-year difference – 74% and 80%, respectively.

Overall, the company reported an 11% increase in family law-related enquiries.

Head of family law, Jenniffer Brunt said: "Traditionally, we see January and September as being our busiest months for enquiries – this is after the summer holidays and after Christmas, so is usually when we're all spending lots more time together and perhaps when problems come to the surface.

"However, with the various lockdowns and tier systems that have been in place over the last 12 months, it's thrown out any sort of seasonal trend and there's no specific 'busy period'.

"Instead, we are seeing people approach us after months and months of being locked indoors together, when they have maybe spotted certain behaviours in their other half or when they have had the time to sit down as a couple and talk about issues in a relationship.

"Likewise, the extra time to think has given many people the opportunity to get the ball rolling with proceedings, perhaps after years of putting it off – they want to start a new chapter and lockdown has given them the kickstart they needed.”

And, according to figures, there was around a third more enquiries relating to children in 2020, compared to 2019.

Approximately 35% more men got in touch in 2020 than in 2019, compared with 27% more women, highlighting how an increased number of fathers have struggled with access to their children.

Jenniffer added: "With constant changes in restrictions and uncertainty around what we could and couldn’t do, parental alienation has been a major issue for a lot of people.

"We've seen some parents being denied access to their children, with lockdown rules being blamed when, in fact, this has never been part of any lockdown guidance.

"As we move through the roadmap out of lockdown and we’re able to do a little bit more outside of our household, we're expecting to numbers begin to level off; however, the potential damage that the last 12 months has had on people’s mental health and relationships is, unfortunately, likely to cause numbers to remain high for some time."