Teen pregnancies falling (From The Wiltshire Gazette and Herald)

Teen pregnancies falling

1:02pm Friday 23rd February 2007 in Swindon By Gazette Reporter

Teenage pregnancy rates in Swindon have dropped to an all-time low, according to the latest figures.

Statistics out yesterday reveal the annual under-18 conception rates have fallen by 12.6 per cent.

The town no longer has the highest teenage pregnancy rate in the south west, after recording a bigger drop than was seen regionally or nationally.

The rates, released by the Office for National Statistics, show that the number of teenage pregnancies dropped by nearly a quarter to 153 in 2005, compared with 198 in 2004.

That means the teenage pregnancy rate fell to 44.2 per 1,000 in 2005, from 56.4 per 1,000 in 2004.

Staff in the Teenage Pregnancy Unit are delighted.

"Although the figures show much improvement, we still have some way to go to reach the Government's 50 per cent reduction target by 2010."

Jane Leaman

Jane Leaman, director of public health at Swindon Primary Care Trust, said: "This is excellent news and is a tribute to the hard work carried out by the partnership.

"The key to the reduction is the change in our local strategy, which meant increased outreach nurse time.

"We are confident that our commitment to continue to develop that service over the coming year will help us maintain this reduction.

"Although the figures show much improvement, we still have some way to go to reach the Government's 50 per cent reduction target by 2010.

"There is still much to do and we need to continue to build on all our partnerships to offer the best services and sexual health education we can to the young people of Swindon."

The National Teenage Pregnancy Strategy started in 1999 with a 10-year goal to halve under-18 conception rates by 2010. The Government took the rate of under-18 conceptions in 1998 as the starting point.

Swindon's rate since then has gone down by 17.3 per cent. Regionally it has fallen by 13.3 per cent and nationally by 11.8 per cent.

Projects scheduled to start locally in 2007 to raise awareness even more include the introduction of a condom distribution scheme.

Further development of the emergency contraception service provided by Swindon pharmacies is also planned, along with a new branding of local sexual health services to make them more recognisable.

The most important scheme being brought to Swindon is Parentline Plus, a project to support parents and help them gain the confidence to talk to their children about sexual heath and relationships matters, through the Time To Talk programme.

Ms Leaman added: "The single biggest influence on young people's sexual behaviour and the choices they make about when to first have sex are their parents and carers and we want to be doing much more now to support them to be able to have helpful and supportive conversations about these issues."

Swindon PCT works with other organisations, including Swindon Council, on the teenage pregnancy strategy launched in 2001.

Recent work has included the appointment of a worker specifically to support boys, young men and young fathers, and an expert officer to support young people who discover they are about to be parents.

The Minister for Children, Young People and Families, Beverley Hughes, said: "The figures show that the strategy is pushing teenage pregnancy rates in the right direction."