Unwanted pregnancies - why so many?

thatbags- try and say this to all my friends, neighbours and colleagues- who are fed up with me saying our the UK is way ahead of here- in so so so many ways.

But ahead too in drugs, alcohol and teenage pregnancies, and child obesity too- facts which do concern me greatly (as my grandchildren are growing there). Will try. There is a saying in French 'qui aime bien, châtie bien' who loves well, punishes well- and it is only because I have a big part of my heart still in the UK, that these things do upset me.

Will try.

The really important thing is to disaggregate the overall UK figures - if you look at them in small chunks eg parliamentary constituencies, you will see a picture that correlates very closely with deprivation indices. Also don't you find it interesting that two societies with some of worst inequalities ie Uk and uSA have the worst overall figures?

First, well done that school, jess. Way to go.

jura, a small thing, a tentative request: perhaps if you were not to compare the UK unfavourably with other European countries quite so often...?

Sounds an excellent plan JessM, as with so many 'problems', getting everything out in the open is often the best idea.

In the school where I was governor for 10 years there used to be a high level of teenage pregnancies and births. It was normal to have at least one pregnant 15/16 year old in school.
During the ten years the incidence dropped sharply and in recent years there were no pregnant girls in school and very few conceptions. Just one over-16 who actually wanted a baby and went through with a pregnancy. This is despite the fact that most of the girls grew up on a council estate.
Why?
Because we employed a brilliant school nurse who was approachable.
Because the school nurse did pregnancy tests if asked by a girl.
Because the school nurse would make sure they got the morning after pill if asked for.
Because there was a free condom scheme in the area and the nurse gave them out (also male PE staff gave them to boys)
Because we had Brook Advisory doing clinics on site in the school lunch hour - it is a long and quite expensive bus trip to their offices in the city centre.

Should have said teaching them about contraception, not sex.

Still looking for the one that got away, but this article has some bar charts which seem to show that the teenage pregnancy rate is not as high in recent years as it was a few years ago. It is mostly a Catholic rant about not teaching girls anything about sex in case they are encouraged to put it into practice, but the charts are (probably) viable separately from the accompanying text.

GRAN

((HUG))

Among the Google results which I looked at but - alas - can't find again was one table which I think showed northern European countries - Scandinavia and so on - also had high proportions, but Spain and Italy had lower. Unless my memory of it was upside down (could be!) maybe there is a North-South trend? Or a catholic/nonconformist one? I wish I had saved the link while I had it.

The US is top of the league, which is interesting given their strong religious bias.

Elegran I thanked you for providing such a useful link, and not biting my head off (perhaps ;) )- I agree with your comments- but why the huge difference between France (just one example) and UK. Your comments apply to them just as much as to UK women. That is my main question- why the huge disparity with other European countries, with similar conditions.

LOL I know you know... but others may think I am a furiner who does not really know about the UK- and looking at things from afar- or being 'anti' UK, which I can assure you I am not. A huge part of my heart will always be in the UK, my daughters, their children and family and friends.

When we PM"D.

I know granjura, that you lived in the LEICS , you told me if you recall !

I am not sure what I posted that drew your thanks, Granjura. It was just a link and quote of many on Google. No-one seems to have a definitive answer.

I thought there might be one element among many factors in my quote “Over the past 60 years, the time between the age at which we first have sex, when we move in with a partner and when we first have children has widened”, explains Professor Wellings. “Women may now spend about 30 years of their lives needing to avoid an unplanned pregnancy.”

Perhaps the lessening of religious observance, compared to some European countries, and lower condemnation of unmarried mothers has contributed? Many babies are now born to mothers in stable relationships but unmarried. There could be a spread of that attitude into those with less stable relationships?

I just see the whole teen-pregnancy as hugely sad. I am not judging morally (well I hope not). Its just that having had two wonderful daughters I would have hated them to have narrowed their life choices at 16 by becoming pregnant on their own. Of course I would have offered support and been a loving Mum to them but I would have deeply mourned the loss of 'what might have been'. I have a sneaky suspicion that my elder daughter would have made a pretty good fist of it but younger daughter would have been very bewildered and scared. Its just that I grew up just as the pill was coming into use, I had a girl friend who was almost not born and whose mother 'escaped' from a 'Mother and baby' unit with her daughter (my friend). All of that fear and worry is now pretty much gone for girls, but that does not make dropping out of school and having a baby that gets pushed into the job centre every week a fun and fulfilling life choice. Women have fought long and hard for a better set of choices (hence my disgust at Blinging up baby) I just do not want any young woman to go down that route for the lack of a pill, the self confidence not to have sex until she wants to (same for many young boys too) or the lack of vision as to her future.

I did ACTUALLYsay FLATS!

Should add, in Manchester the shortage of flats means anyone applying has to go on the list and pregnancies don't put them any higher - they'll be given a hostel place, self-contained.

They don't get council houses here, either, nonu. People can be allocated hostel places, flats or find private rental property and claim the relevant, eligible amount of housing benefit if they need to. The days when stories spread about giving teenage girls with a baby their own council house are both long gone and grossly exaggerated.

I've lived in Switzerland, where I was born and bred- for the past 5 years- but before I lived for almost 40 in the Midlands, as a mother and teacher of teenage girls. And the answer is 'no' they do not here where I live- and neither do they in France or Germany.

UK rates of teenage births are five times those in the Netherlands, double those in France and more than twice those in Germany- so why?

Message received, GRANJURA but may I ask if where you live, do the girls get council flats as they do over here when they become pregnant?

Sometimes it is a way to get away from the home situation, but I don"t think they realise that A BABY IS A HUGE RESPONSIBILITY.

Will probably get rapped over the knuckles, but hey I have said it !

Thank you for this Elegran. I seem to have upset some people with this thread- who have related to things of the past rather than the current situation. Having taught all my adult life in secondary schools and 6th Form, and had 2 daugthers myself- I know how well sex ed is taught now, and all the advice, support, contraception from specialist clinics (not the family GP..), etc.

And I also know that it upsets people if I say unwanted pregnancies or teenage babies seems to be much more of an issue in the UK than other European countries too- but facts are facts and cannot really be ignored. I am often asked why- and I just do not know. Why should the subconscious desire to procreate be stronger in the UK, than say, in France or Germany???

This thread is not meant to judge, criticize, stereotype, etc- but to tra and understand. Hope this is understood. And is about NOW not the 40s and 50s.

A study on the subject by the Wellcome Trust

“Over the past 60 years, the time between the age at which we first have sex, when we move in with a partner and when we first have children has widened”, explains Professor Wellings. “Women may now spend about 30 years of their lives needing to avoid an unplanned pregnancy.”

and

" “Our estimate of the rate of unplanned pregnancies in Britain is lower than estimates in some other high income countries. This may be explained by differences in measurement, but it may also in part be due to contraception being available free of charge from the NHS.”

Which brings us full circle, Granjura, Many are not really "accidents" but Freudian slips by the subconscious minds of young women whose bodies are primed by nature to procreate.

Of course 'accidents' will always happen- but accidents should be rare. At all the schools I taught at, the stomach upset + pill situation was always well explained- and students told to use extra protection in case of. Condoms do burst- but not so frequently- etc. So it does seem that (nowadays) will all the education, support, free advice, etc- accidents should be much much rarer than they are.

Eg pill not working because the girl is taking antibiotics [I know the Dr should point it out] or has had a tummy bug. Burst condom and then girl being scared to see a doctor. I know when I was young I was scared to see a doctor when I had a urine infection, because my friends laughed and said 'we all know what causes that, don't we', so it can be big deal to young people, making an appointment [if they can get one]. Young people were sometimes worried to come to our surgery in case I told their mums [as if I would, but they worried anyway].