It's been rumoured to be on the way for ages, but Cheryl Tweedy and Liam Payne have finally announced that they are going their separate ways after a two year relationship. They plan to work their way through this difficult time together as they continue to co-parent their young son.

Cheryl and Liam Payne at the Brit AwardsCheryl and Liam Payne at the Brit Awards

According to reports, the 35-year-old 'X Factor' judge split from the 24-year-old One Direction star around two weeks ago, but it was only yesterday (July 1st 2018) that the pair announced their break-up to the public over social media.

'We are sad to announce that we are going our separate ways', Cheryl wrote on Twitter. 'It's been a tough decision for us to make. We still have so much love for each other as a family. Bear is our world and we ask that you respect his privacy as we navigate our way through this together.'

Liam also posted the same message on his own account. He and Cheryl have a 15-month-old son together named Bear, but despite their family life, things have not been easy for them as a couple for some time. Earlier this year, Liam confessed that they'd been having a few relationship problems, but dismissed them as inevitable factors of a partnership.

'We have our struggles', he told the Evening Standard. 'I'm not gonna sit here and say that everything's absolutely fine and dandy, because of course you go through different things, and that's what a relationship is. But we go through them together as a family and that's the most important thing for me.' 

The pair first met when Liam auditioned for 'The X Factor' ten years ago when he was just 14. He came back to the show in 2010 for a second audition after not making it through the first time, and ended up becoming a part of One Direction.

More: Liam Payne opens up about relationship problems

Cheryl was previously married to footballer Ashley Cole between 2006 and 2010, and then French restaurateur Jean-Bernard Fernandez-Versini between 2014 and 2016.