Listening to Young Parents LISTENING TO YOUNG PARENTS Research exploring the issue of teenage pregnancy in Merthyr Tydfil Duncan Mackenzie Research and Evaluation Officer Merthyr Tydfil Children and Young People’s Partnership

Listening to Young Parents Presentation structure Background and context Development of the research Initial findings Potential outcomes Discussion

Listening to Young Parents Background and context

Listening to Young Parents 67% higher than Welsh average

Listening to Young Parents Conception rates for women aged 15-17yrs No. conceptionsAbove Welsh ave.Difference % % % % % % % %

Listening to Young Parents Who said this? ‘Teenage mothers are less likely to finish their education, less likely to find a job and more likely…to bring up their children in poverty. Our failure to tackle this problem…has cost the country dear.’ Tony Blair, Teenage Pregnancy Strategy, Government Social Exclusion Unit1999 ‘The (valleys) girls’ aspiration is to get pregnant as quickly as possible and get a council property’ Barbara Wilding, Chief Constable, South Wales Police Force Jane’s Police Review Dec 2009

Listening to Young Parents Who said this? (cont.) ‘Children born to teenage mothers are more likely to live in deprived areas, do less well at school, and disengage from learning early – all risk factors for poor outcomes’ Beverley Hughes, then Minister for Children, Young People and Families, 2006 ‘Teenage pregnancy rates in the UK have increased in the last 20 years’ 81% of respondents to an Ipsos MORI poll, 2008 From the same poll: 95% of respondents over-estimated the actual rate of teenage pregnancy A quarter of all 15-26yr olds surveyed thought four out of ten girls under 16yr old fell pregnant every year (actual rate is less than 1%)

Listening to Young Parents 887,000 conceptions in the UK in to women aged 14ys and under 0.04% of all conceptions

Listening to Young Parents Research project development Reasoning for the research –Highest rate of teenage conceptions in England and Wales –Response to negative media attention –Collective desire to act from CYPP What did we want to achieve? –Why and how are young girls becoming pregnant? –How good are our services at dealing with pregnant teenagers? –Research will provide questions rather than answers Methodology –Developed by young people –Specific Merthyr focus –Provide new information

Listening to Young Parents Methodology Semi structured questionnaire format, covering: Family circumstances Information and support received before, during and after pregnancy Experience of birth Options given to participants for style of engagement Aim to interview 50 young parents – findings not intended to be statistically representative

Listening to Young Parents Methodology (cont.) Combination of quantitative / qualitative data –assessment of services –personal stories Ethics approval –Not sought from NHS –Potential benefits of using health services outweighed by disruption of process Recruitment of participants –Non-health provisions asked to signpost young parents

Listening to Young Parents London Model of Unplanned Pregnancy Six questions around the circumstances of a young girl’s pregnancy, covering: Contraception use prior to conception Aspirations Mind set of young girl and partner Health behaviour Multiple choice answers, which give a score out of 12: 0 = completely unplanned 12 = totally planned

Listening to Young Parents Initial findings * Young parents were: Fully engaged with the process and keen to take part Brutally honest in interview Source of recruitment of participants will skew results? Clear distinction between engaged and disengaged parents Before and during pregnancy: PSE provision was poor. Single sex provision is paramount Contraception methods unreliable Uptake of ante natal provision almost non-existent Lack of practical and basic advice given Continuity of health staff produces better outcomes * These results are not statistically robust

Listening to Young Parents Initial findings * Birth: Large number of difficult births Teenage parents often needed an advocate during procedure Negative experiences all too common Being a parent: Generally very positive Those with a single, named health visitor recount an overwhelmingly positive experience No sign posting to accessing benefits, services available, etc Support groups focussed on young parents invaluable

Listening to Young Parents Potential outcomes Links to the CYP Plan – Sexual Health priority –Specific need to gain more information from young people –Quantify experiences of young people and service providers into robust format to provide a challenging argument for change –More research and consultation needed to inform service planning Roadblocks –Attitude of adults (Councillors, parents, Governors, educationalists, etc)

Listening to Young Parents Duncan Mackenzie Research and Evaluation Officer Merthyr Tydfil Children and Young People’s Partnership