IVI Institute Reveals Groundbreaking New Data on the Aspirations, Challenges, and Choices Shaping the Path to Parenthood in the United Kingdom, Sweden, and France

New IVI Institute Fertility Barometer reveals that while the desire for parenthood remains strong, many factors contribute to women having fewer children than they want, later than they want – and increasing trusted care for women experiencing infertility could help close the gap

Press Kit

LONDON, Oct. 13, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- IVI Institute, the global leader in reproductive medicine, today released new data from the IVI Institute Fertility Barometer, a new study of 24,000+ individuals across nine countries providing a global view of fertility aspirations, experiences, and barriers. The findings from the U.K., Sweden, and France offer a closer look at how women view motherhood, fertility, and family building, pointing to a complex fertility landscape with a growing need for trusted information, expert care, and greater confidence throughout the journey to parenthood.

According to the Fertility Barometer, for women in the U.K., Sweden, and France, the desire to become a mother remains strong – 81-84% are already mothers or want children, and 68-70% say becoming a mother is a priority for them – but the path to parenthood is increasingly being delayed. Many are starting their families later than they hoped and having fewer children than they intended. Among women surveyed with a target age, 31-41% had their first child later than desired, and mothers reported having 2-2.1 children on average, compared with the 2.8-2.9 they say they want.

"The Fertility Barometer shines a light on something that can be difficult to quantify, the emotional and practical burden women can carry when navigating fertility," said Dan Annetts, CEO of Northern Europe. "For many women, fertility is no longer simply a question of whether they want to have children. It can involve uncertainty, difficult decisions about timing, concerns about their future options and, for some, the experience of infertility itself. Understanding that broader experience is essential to providing care that supports patients not only clinically, but with greater clarity and confidence."

The release of this new data comes as IVI, formerly known as IVI RMA Global, is bringing together its expertise, leading fertility clinics, and cutting edge research under one unified vision and new name: IVI Institute. In this next chapter, IVI clinics will operate as IVI Fertility, Livio, and Create Fertility as members of IVI Institute, connecting patients to a global network of reproductive medicine expertise, innovation, and research.

What Women in the UK, Sweden, and France Say About Fertility and Motherhood

The IVI Institute Fertility Barometer reveals a clear gap between the families women want and the families they ultimately have – one shaped less by changing aspirations than by the circumstances and barriers that delay their path to parenthood:

• The desire to become a mother remains strong. Across the U.K., Sweden, and France, 81-84% are already mothers or want children, and 68-70% say becoming a mother is of medium-high or high importance to them.
• Despite this strong aspiration, women reported that they are starting families later than they hoped. In the U.K., Sweden, and France, for those who reported a target age for starting a family, 31-41% had their first child later than desired, and mothers surveyed reported having 2-2.1 children on average, compared with the 2.8-2.9 they intend to have. This clear gap between the families women want and the families they ultimately have is shaped less by changing aspirations than by the circumstances and barriers that delay their path to parenthood. Most commonly, women cite finding the right partner (U.K.: 42%, Sweden: 44%, France: 41%) and confidence in the decision (U.K.: 35%, Sweden: 38%, France: 43%) as being the most commonly cited factors that made it the right time to start a family.
• Infertility touches the lives of nearly one in five women. Approximately 5.2 million across the U.K., Sweden, and France have experienced infertility at some point in their lives, and over 1 million women are experiencing it today. Among women who have experienced infertility, many rate its negative impact at 7 out of 10 or higher – ranging from 59% in Sweden, to 68% in the U.K., to a high of 79% in France. 
• Only 17-21% of women in the U.K, Sweden, and France who have experienced infertility report undergoing IVF. Most cite factors like a lack of confidence in success and emotional stress as substantial reasons deterring them from taking the next step, alongside financial concerns – meaning navigating fertility treatment is as much about trust and information as it is about cost.

Collectively, the Barometer findings point to a fertility landscape in which women are balancing aspirations for family with uncertainty about their fertility, changing circumstances, and an evolving understanding of what reproductive medicine can offer. For healthcare providers, that makes access to clear information and trusted clinical expertise increasingly important.

One Global Network, Connected by a Shared Vision

Fertility care today is more advanced than ever, but patients are also navigating more information, more choices, and often more uncertainty. IVI Institute is designed to bring greater confidence to that increasingly complex journey by connecting world-class physicians, embryologists, scientists, laboratories, data, and research in more than 200 clinics across 15 countries.

For patients in Northern Europe, IVI Fertility, Livio, and Create Fertility, as part of IVI Institute, offer a connection to more than 30 years of scientific leadership, clinical expertise, and reproductive medicine innovation—combining the strength of a global network with care grounded in the needs of women and families in Northern Europe.

"The Fertility Barometer's findings confirm what we're seeing across our global network: women are increasingly aware of reproductive medicine's potential, and they're making family-planning decisions based on that knowledge," said Javier Sánchez-Prieto, IVI Institute Global CEO. "Our unified structure aims to address emerging demand through expanded access and coordination of personalized care. We will continue setting the global standard in reproductive medicine through clinical excellence, data-driven advancements and decades of experience."

"IVI Institute is not a departure from who we have been—it is an evolution of the strength we have built over more than 30 years," said Antonio Pellicer, Executive Chairman. "We are bringing together the very best of our expertise so that innovation can move faster, knowledge can travel further, and patients can benefit from greater consistency, precision, and support."

To learn more about the IVI Institute Fertility Barometer's findings, visit fertilitybarometer.iviinstitute.com.

About IVI Institute

IVI Institute is the global leader in reproductive medicine, bringing together world-class fertility clinics and expertise to advance the future of fertility care around the world. With 100+ babies born every day across more than 200 locations in 15 countries – including IVI Fertility, Everleap Fertility, LIVIO, Create Fertility, and TRIO clinics, among other brands – IVI Institute accelerates innovation, expands knowledge, and improves outcomes for patients around the world through groundbreaking research, collaboration, and rigorous clinical standards. Learn more at www.iviinstitute.com.

About Livio

Livio is the Nordic leader in reproductive medicine, with nine clinics across Sweden, Denmark and Iceland. With nearly 40 years of experience, we combine clinical excellence, cutting-edge reproductive technology and some of the region's most experienced fertility specialists. Our commitment to quality, innovation and compassionate, patient-centred care drives our mission to help more people fulfil their dream of building a family. Learn more at livio.se.

About the IVI Institute Fertility Barometer

Fertility is an urgent social and public health issue, yet it is still discussed with little evidence on what people themselves think, want, and fear. The IVI Institute Fertility Barometer was created to close that gap. IVI Institute surveyed a representative sample of 24,074 women aged 19 to 49 in nine countries: Canada, France, Italy, Spain, Sweden, Portugal, UAE, the U.K., and the U.S., from May 16 to July 3, 2026. The survey was administered online using Computer-Assisted Web Interviewing (CAWI). Results were weighted by region, age, and education level, except in the UAE, where weights were applied by emirate and age. The margin of error is ±0.63 percentage points at a 95% confidence level (p=q=50%), with larger margins among subgroups. IVI Institute and GfK, a NielsenIQ company, partnered on this research to understand how women think about fertility, parenthood, and family formation, and the barriers that shape reproductive decisions today. The research was conducted in collaboration with the member brands of IVI Institute: IVI Fertility, Everleap Fertility, ART Fertility, Genera, Create Fertility, LIVIO, and TRIO.