Britain's Ladies See Less Leisure as Men Enjoy Extra Five Hours

It’s not just the gender pay gap -- British women are lagging their male counterparts when it comes to downtime as well.

Men took around 43 hours of leisure time each week in 2015, almost five hours more than women, according to data from the Office for National Statistics published Tuesday. The disparity is also getting worse. While the amount of time men spend on activities such as socializing, resting, sports and hobbies has grown since 2000, it has fallen for women.

Although women are more frequently in part-time work, they also spend a greater number of hours completing unpaid work such as household chores and childcare, the ONS said. People of both sexes living in households with a child under the age of 15 years reported taking up to 14 hours per week less downtime than those living alone. Even so, men consistently took more than women regardless of how old the child was.

Age is also a factor, with the amount of leisure time increasing as people get older, the ONS found. Those age 25 to 34 took the fewest hours of any age group, which may be due to people in this age group having young children, it said.

When they did relax, mass media consumption -- which can include reading, listening to music and watching TV -- was the most popular form of leisure for parents.