Top reasons why couples stay in troubled marriages revealed

A new survey has revealed the top 10 reasons why couples stay in an unhappy marriage and avoid getting divorced.

According to the survey of 2,000 married parents, four in ten are currently in a marriage they aren't completely happy with - but some have too much to lose, while 37 percent admitted they have held off on divorce due to concerns about their children, the Mirror reported.

One in four unhappy couples are only planning to stay together until their kids grow up - so they don't have to grow up with the trauma of a divorce.

Martin Loxley, Head of the Family Law team at Irwin Mitchell solicitors, which commissioned the research, warned that in some cases, children feel 'cheated' if, when they get older, they realise their parents were putting on a 'front' during their childhoods and while it is an understandable reaction, in some cases doing so may only serve to increase the long term adverse effects on them.

Top ten reasons for staying in an unhappy marriage are:

1. I have too much to lose

2. Worried about the impact on the children

3. I can't afford to move out/live on my own

4. I can't afford to go through a divorce

5. I want to give it some more time before making a final decision

6. Stigma of divorce

7. For my partner's money

8. Worried about how we will manage contact with the children

9. I worry I won't meet anyone else

10.