Fewer couples in West Sussex are getting married outside church, according to new statistics.

The number of civil ceremonies in the county fell by nine per cent last year, dropping from 2,674 in 2000 to 2,434 in 2001.

Experts suspect the drop is due to couples pushing their marriages forward so they could marry in the millennium year.

A spokeswoman for the county council's registration service, where the results were compiled, said: "We cannot give any definite reasons why there has been an upward trend over the past five years that fell last year.

"The only thing we can think of is a lot of people wanted to get married in the millennium year. This may account for a slight dip in the year 2001."

Ishbel Daniel, a counsellor and sex therapist for Relate, based in Brighton, said: "I think we are seeing an awful lot more people not getting married than ever before.

"People don't seem to see the need anymore. Lots more people are living together instead.

"I also wonder if people can confuse marriage with weddings.

"People seem to live together and have children and when they get married a lot of the time they talk about the wedding rather than actually being married.

"I think people don't see the need to make it formal."

National statistics show more people got married in the millennium year throughout England and Wales than in the past eight years.