TEENAGE pregnancies in Hull, which were once the highest in Europe, have fallen by 40 per cent.
The city had the sixth-highest rate in England in 2009 but the latest available figures from 2011 now show the number of youngsters getting pregnant dropped from 386 in 1998 to 231 – a 40 per cent drop.
The number of young girls then going on to have another pregnancy has also dropped from 20 per cent to 13 per cent.
Gail Teasdale, integrated services manager for children and young people's health at Hull City Council, said: "There has been no one magical solution for the decrease – it has been a combination of things.
"We now have good-quality sex education, such as teaching the importance of contraception, good communications skills and resisting peer pressure.
"We have also been targeting boys and young men.
"When we started out, campaigns and information were very much focused on the girls, but the young boys are 50 per cent responsible, too.
"We've found promoting abstinence doesn't work – if you tell a teenager not to do something, it makes it more appealing.
"But we have emphasised not giving in to peer pressure and waiting until you are confident, in a happy relationship and have the right information before having sex."
Ms Teasdale says the team has also been speaking to staff in the voluntary sector, such as youth workers, so they can give the correct information and advice.
She said: "One of the biggest barriers to break has been encouraging teenagers to seek out sexual health services before they have sex.
"Getting the correct information first is important, rather than waiting until afterwards, when it is a bit late."
The city's dramatic decrease in teenage pregnancies has been noticed by sexual health services in other parts of the country, too.
Ms Teasdale said: "Before we started our work, Hull was twice the national average so, in some ways, we had a lot further to go.
"But now we've actually been asked to present some of our work at national conferences as an example of best practice.
"We don't intend to stop there and hope we can reduce it further – by 50 per cent in 2015."
She also explained that teenagers who do decide to continue their pregnancy – about 65 per cent – often do not go back into education and employment.
However, part of the council's public health role has been to support young mothers.
She said: "We make sure those who do decide to be young parents have a healthy pregnancy and are good parents.
"Some have been able to go back into education.
"One teenage mum, who is now 20, is doing an apprenticeship and goes into schools and colleges to talk about her experience.
"She is a good role model for teenage parents."
For more information about all aspects of sexual health, from contraception to pregnancy tests, visit the Wilberforce Health Centre in Story Street or call 01482 336336.
10
