County Durham Local Teenage Pregnancy Strategy - Full Document

Primary Care Groups have a crucial role in developing services to address the
considerable estimated levels of unmet need for contraceptive services and sexual
health advice for young people. This is through direct service provision, through
developing appropriate services in partnership with Trusts including maximise the
potential of school nurses, and the Voluntary Sector, and by streamlining the flow of
information to the public about all aspects of sexual health services.
In addressing the needs of teenage parents, there is a good service basis in terms of
provision for under 16s. This needs to be built on to ensure the service is accessible
to all who need it, and to address the needs of young parents aged 16-18. In doing
this the importance of recognising the variety of circumstances and needs within the
category ‘teenage parents’ is crucial.
Finally, the role of the wider community is important if the underlying issues of open
and direct communication about matters related to sexual health are to be
addressed. Developmental work with parents is one part of this work.
There is no doubt that the potential to both reduce teenage pregnancies and to
promote the sexual health of our communities is there.
We look forward to working locally and with others nationally to achieve an
appropriate balance between specific targeted work, and an approach to young
people as a whole.
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