Pregnancy rate among teenagers in Scotland falls to lowest on record

Scotland's teenage pregnancy rate has reached a record low, new figures have revealed.

The number of women under 20 who became pregnant fell for the 12th year in a row, to 3,814 in 2019 - a drop of almost 60 per cent from the 9,362 recorded in 2007.

And for the first time, more than half of teenagers who conceived in 2019 opted not to continue with their pregnancy, with 50.3 per cent opting for a termination. Publishing the figures, Public Health

Scotland said: "The teenage pregnancy rate in Scotland is at its lowest level since reporting began in 1994. The rate fell from 30 per 1,000 women in 2018 to 28 per 1,000 in 2019."

The report added: "The trend of decreasing rates in the under-20 age group in Scotland continued for the 12th consecutive year in 2019, with a decrease of over 50 per cent observed since 2007."

The figures cover those women under the age of 20 who became pregnant during 2019 – with Public Health Scotland explaining the delay in reporting the figures "is due to the amount of time required for a conception to result in a birth or termination, and for the relevant documentation to be recorded and validated".

A total of 219 girls under the age of 16 became pregnant in 2019, 5.7 per cent of teen pregnancies. A further 1,241 were under the age of 18, while 2,573 were aged either 18 or 19 when they became pregnant.

The report also found that, while teenage pregnancy rates have fallen across all levels of deprivation over the last decade, "rates in the most deprived areas have fallen more rapidly".