A COMPANY has reported a surge in sales of paternity tests in September and October – which it claims could be down to Christmas conceptions.

AlphaBiolabs, which performs the DNA testing for The Jeremy Kyle Show and is based in Westbrook, says there was a 40 per cent increase in sales of paternity kits in those two months.

Data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) show a surge in births around 40 weeks after Christmas.

More babies are conceived during the festive period than at any other time of the year.

The ONS said: “A peak in births in late September shows that more babies are conceived in the weeks leading up to and days after Christmas than at any other time of the year.”

Data shows that if births were evenly distributed around the year there would be an average of 1800 births per day in England and Wales, but in September the average is 2000.

Some potential parents are known to plan ahead to target the start of the new school year. A series of studies and Department of Education figures have suggested that September babies, who are the oldest in their year group, are at an advantage.

Rachel Davenport, AlphaBiolabs spokesman, said DNA test kits at Home Bargain stores are also flying off the shelves.

She added: “We’d usually test over 100 people per day on average.

"But in September and October, we were looking at an increase of more than 40 per cent for paternity tests."