TEENAGE PREGNANCY CASE STUDY
The governmental Social Exclusion Unit delivered a report in 1999 (Social Exclusion Unit 1999) outlining the scale of teenage pregnancies in UK and an action plan for better preventive measures and support. The following points summed up the scale of the teenage pregnancy problem (Social Exclusion Unit 1999) :
- Teenage pregnancy is a problem, which affects just about every part of the country. Even the most affluent areas in England have teenage birth rates, which are high by European standards.
- The problem is far worse in the poorest areas and amongst the most vulnerable young people, including those in care and those who have been excluded from school.
- Although less than a third of teenagers are sexually active by the time they are 16, half of those who are use no contraception the first time.
- Teenagers who do not use contraception have a 90% chance of conceiving within one year and those who do not use condoms are also exposed to a range of sexually transmitted infections (STIs). In a single act of unprotected sex with an infected partner, teenage women have a 1% chance of acquiring HIV, a 30% risk of getting genital herpes and a 50% chance of contracting gonorrhoea.
- Of those who do get pregnant, half of under 16s and more than a third of 16 and 17 year olds opt for abortion - that means just over 15,000 under 18s a year have abortions.
- Ninety% of teenage mothers have their babies outside marriage, and relationships started in the teenage years have at least a 50% chance of breaking down.
- Teenage parents are more likely than their peers to live in poverty and unemployment and to be trapped in it through lack of education, child care and encouragement.
- The death rate for the babies of teenage mothers is 60% higher than for babies of older mothers and they are more likely to have low birth weights, to have childhood accidents and to be admitted to hospital. In the longer term, their daughters have a higher chance of becoming teenage mothers themselves.
National campaigns have been initiated in order to target young people and their parents with the facts about teenage pregnancies and parenthood. Networks have been set up between educational, health care, and social care units in order to improve campaign aims at the local level. Support packages have been designed to help young parents with housing, health care, parenting skills, education and child care (Social Exclusion Unit 1999).
Teenage pregnancy rates have fallen nationally, but remain high in deprived, urban areas. Southwark has one of the highest under-18 pregnancy rates in the UK and there is a need for an improved targeting of high-risk individuals and areas in order to bring down rates (Table and Figure).
Conception rates per 1000 15-17 year old girls, 1998-2004. [TOP]
| Region | 1998 | 2004 | Change (%) |
| England and Wales | 47.1 | 41.7 | -11.6 |
| London | 51.1 | 48.1 | -5.8 |
| Southwark | 87.2 | 85.2 | -2.3 |
Teenage Pregnancy in Southwark as percentage of mothers for each age group. [TOP]
In order to improve targeting, a study was conducted to identify high-risk areas within the Borough. It used birth and abortion records from the NHS as well as statistics from private abortion clinics, for the years 2002-2004 (Butt et al. 2006).
Geodemographic profiling is used by businesses to target sections of the population most likely to consume their products or services. The profiling provides a rich context and also contains information from lifestyle questionnaires about the media that a particular neighbourhood type is most receptive to. Local teenage pregnancy risk indices were calculated by Mosaic UK Types and two different base populations: total vs. under-18 populations (Figure). Most cases were found in the Metro Multiculture Type (564 occurrences) and Counter Cultural Mix (119 occurrences). Mapping occurrences showed local clusters for Settled Minorities (75 occurrences). For some Types the index value for under-18 population was lower than for the total population indicating that postcodes belonging to these types have a higher proportion of under-18s relative to total population; e.g. Metro Multiculture.
Local Teenage Pregnancy Indices. [TOP]
The two bars indicates index values calcultated two different base population. Index bar using total population as base are coloured in grey. Index bar using under-18 population as base is brightly coloured in line with the Mosaic UK Group palette.
More than 90% of postcodes with teenage pregnancy occurrences belong to Metro Multiculture (Table). The predominance of a single Type makes recommendations for campaigns simpler.
Distribution of Mosaic UK postcode Types with teenage pregnancy occurrences in council housing estates. [TOP]
Estate |
Just Moving In |
Settled Minorities |
Counter Cultural Mix |
Metro Multiculture |
Dignified Dependency |
Sharing a Staircase |
| A | 6 | 1 | ||||
| B | 24 | |||||
| C | 6 | |||||
| D | 5 | |||||
| E | 3 | 3 | 2 | |||
| F | 4 | |||||
| G | 5 | |||||
| H | 6 | |||||
| I | 1 | 7 | ||||
| J | 7 | |||||
| K | 8 | |||||
| L | 7 | |||||
| M | 7 | |||||
| N | 1 | 5 | ||||
| O | 2 | 3 | ||||
| P | 8 | |||||
| Q | 2 | 1 | 12 | 1 | ||
| R | 10 | |||||
| S | 4 | |||||
| Freq. | 3 | 7 | 3 | 136 | 1 | 1 |
| Percent | 2.0 | 4.6 | 2.0 | 90.1 | 0.7 | 0.7 |
REFERENCES [TOP]
Social Exclusion Unit. 1999. Teenage pregnancy report. Social Exclusion Unit, Cabinet Office website: URL.
Butt et al. 2006. Mapping of hotspots: An analysis of teenage conceptions in Southwark 2002-04. Public Health.
