It's up to the individual, but I would say that a general 'ideal time' is in the years between 30-35.

You are old enough to have enjoyed your youth (!), but not too old for fertility issues to be raising their dismaying head.

Hopefully you have a 'settled relationship' with your partner by then, and both of you have earned enough to put by some for the expenses of child-rearing.

On a personal level you are probably quite mature at that age (relatively speaking!) and have enough patience and diligence for the ardours of child-raising not to be too onerous (ie, you don't want to be off clubbing every night!)

Finally, in your early thirties you're still pretty near your peak of fitness, so should be nice and strong for labour and child-raising!

One thing I would definitely say, that I have learnt from my own tragic experience. I was an 'older mum' in that like many of my generation (70s) we were told that we could have babies 'on demand' when it suited our careers. Well, I didn't start trying till 35, and assumed blissfully I'd get pregnant straight away. Four years later.....

So, it happened at last (expensively - and a LOT of heartache and fear it wouldn't), and all seemed set for a happy ending.

BUT, l5 years later, with our son still at secondary school, my husband was diagnosed with late-stage cancer in his fifties.

My son is now fatherless.

I say this to warn you that all the 'pros' of being an older parent - and there are quite a lot, mainly that of more patience, more readiness to give up 'youf-lifestyles', more income, etc etc - are wiped out by what I now realise is the very real threat of severe illness and worse, which I have to say I arrogantly discounted (along with my biological clock!).

Putting it bluntly, had we started a family earlier, our son would have reached adulthood before losing his dad, and that would have caused him a lot less pain.

Well, that's my input on this subject, FWIW!

Julie.