Plan to tackle 'higher than average' teenage pregnancy rates in Walsall
An action plan to help tackle Walsall’s higher than national average levels of teenage pregnancy has been agreed.
Members of the borough’s Health and Wellbeing Board was told, despite major reductions in the last couple of decades, more work needed to be done to address the issue.
A report presented to Tuesday’s meeting revealed in 2021, the under-16 conception rate in Walsall was 3.8 per 1,000 compared with England at 2.1.
The under 18 birth rate in Walsall was 5.2 per cent in 2021 while the rate for England was 3.2.
At the meeting Dr Nadia Inglis, Walsall’s director of public health, said new data from the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities showed there were 25 teenage mothers in Walsall in 2022/23 compared with 100 in 2011/10.
But she added this was 10 more than there were in 2021/22 and said they needed to make sure they “didn’t take their eye off the ball”.
Health and Wellbeing Board members approved the new Walsall Teenage Pregnancy Prevention and Reduction Strategy 2024-2029.
Among the strategy’s plans to reduce the teenage pregnancy in Walsall will be targeted work in areas where rates are not reducing and ensure easy access to support services.
Health bosses will also look at tackling underlying factors that increase the risk of teenage pregnancy – such as poverty, low educational attainment, poor attendance at school, non-participation in post-16 learning and low aspirations.
David Neale, public health development officer, said: “There is a huge amount of evidence out there and it is well documented that having children at an early age damages young parents health and wellbeing, can severely limit education and career prospects and has a significant impact on infant mortality rates.
“The reduction of teenage pregnancy is an issue for across the whole health spectrum and wider partners.
“Since 2007, the rates of teenage pregnancy have decreased in Walsall and nationally as well but there is more work to done.
“We have an ambition in terms of the strategy to see Walsall’s rates to become below the national and regional averages.”
