Abortions for almost half pregnant U18s across North Lincs

NEARLY half of under-18s who become pregnant in North Lincolnshire have an abortion, new figures have shown.

Office of National Statistics figures have revealed our region has the highest rate of abortions for under-18s in the Humber area.

Of the 114 under-18s to conceive in 2011, 54 (47.4 per cent) had a termination.

That percentage is 11 per cent higher than North East Lincolnshire and 14 per cent higher than Hull.

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It is also higher than the Yorkshire and Humber average, which is 42.5 per cent.

In Yorkshire and the Humber there were 3,231 under-18 pregnancies in 2011, and 29,166 nationally.

Natasha Phillips, commissioning manager for sexual health for NHS North Lincolnshire, said she believes the proper use of long-lasting contraceptives such as hormone implants could help reduce the number of teen pregnancies.

"Becoming a parent should be a choice and long-acting reversible contraceptions (LARCs) allow you to control when you want to be a parent most effectively," she said.

"In North Lincolnshire, we've been working in partnership with education to make sure young people have access to the best information on contraception to be able to make the right choice for them. We are seeing more young people making that choice."

Compared to 2010, the percentage of abortions in North Lincolnshire has significantly increased.

There were 140 under-18 pregnancies in 2010, with 36.4 per cent of them leading to abortion. Nationally, the number of under-18 pregnancies leading to abortion fell from 50.3 per cent in 2010 to 49.3 per cent in 2011.

NHS North Lincolnshire officials say all GPs provide free contraception, and Weldricks in Epworth and the Ironstone Centre in Scunthorpe provide access to oral contraception, condoms, referral to GPs for LARCS, and can provide confidential information on all methods to help young women make an informed choice.

A spokeswoman for North Lincolnshire Council, which runs services for young parents, said: "Sure Start Children's Centres across North Lincolnshire provide specific support to young parents tailored to their individual circumstances.

"Young parents may feel uncomfortable within a larger group and some believe that they are stigmatised and perceived by others as bad parents, which is one of the main challenges they might face.

"The centres support young parents to increase their social and support network. Groups are run just for young parents giving them the opportunity to meet others and services are planned in partnership with these parents."

For more details, visit www. northlincssexualhealth.co.uk

More health stories at www.thisisscunthorpe.co.uk/ health