East Ren has lowest level of teen mums
Campaign to curb pregnancies hailed a success
East Renfrewshire’s approach to educating young women about pregnancy is making an impact, with teenage pregnancy in the area now at a record low.
The latest figures released by Public Health Scotland (PHS) highlight that the local authority area has the lowest level of teenage pregnancy in Scotland.
In the most recent data, the national average is 30 teenage pregnancies per 1,000 women and in East Renfrewshire the figure is just 10.6.
This shows a significant reduction in the past ten years across the region, with the figure from a decade ago of 35 teenage pregnancies per 1,000 women.
The improvement made in recent years is testament to the targeted work that has been put in place to support young women and educate them through bespoke prevention programmes.
While some teenagers make a planned, positive life choice to have a baby, many experience unintended or unwanted pregnancies.
Having identified an issue with teenage pregnancy in Auchenback, Barrhead, the council’s Young Person’s Services team began working closely with high schools and other partners to tackle the issue in 2015.
The initial work achieved a 60 per cent reduction in teenage pregnancies in Auchenback and a reduction from 22 per cent to nine per cent of first-time mums under 19 in the wider Barrhead area.
These latest PHS figures, which are for 2018, highlight that the continued interventions being put in place in East Renfrewshire to educate and support young people to make positive life choices are having a real impact across the whole area.
Councillor Colm Merrick, convener for Community Services and Community Safety, said: “We remain committed to supporting young people across our local authority and it’s extremely pleasing to see that the dedicated work we have put in to educate young people about parenthood is having an impact.
“The education programmes we have put in place were devised by working with young mums, so they accurately convey the realities of young parenthood and also outline information young parents wished they had known beforehand but didn’t know they needed at the time.
“So, the sessions resonate with our young people and allow them to make informed decisions.
“To have brought teenage pregnancies in East Renfrewshire to the lowest level in Scotland is a fantastic effort and we will continue to work to reinforce these important messages to our young people.”
In addition to the educational work done in schools, the council also runs two young mums groups, Little Bumps and Baby Love, which offer a range of support. Both groups are for under25s and provide advice and support throughout pregnancy, including practical skills, and up until the baby is 12 months old.
Find out more about the council’s support for young mums at https:// eastrenfrewshire.gov.uk/ young-mums