The level of teen pregnancy in Cornwall has fallen to the lowest level since records started to be kept in 1969.

The average rate of under-18 conceptions is now 24.6 conceptions per 1,000 women, down from 27.9 per 1,000 for the same period the previous year, according to figures from the Office of National Statistics.

This is below the national average of 25.8 per 1,000 across England and Wales, although this is still high compared to other European countries.

Since the launch of the National Teenage Pregnancy Strategy in 1998, Cornwall has achieved a 37.9 per cent reduction in teenage conceptions, falling short of the national target of 50 per cent.

The council says that teenage pregnancy is often associated with "poor outcomes for the mother and child", such as the baby’s health, the mother’s emotional health and wellbeing, and an increased likelihood of them both living in long-term poverty.

In addition to this, many teenage conceptions are unintended, and 44.6 per cent lead to abortion.

Louise Sweeney, teenage pregnancy and sexual health coordinator, said, “It’s fantastic that Cornwall continues to see a decline in its rates of teenage pregnancy. Good partnership work and continued commitment to providing a range of contraceptive and sexual health services to young people have been effective in supporting young people to make healthy choices.

“However some areas in Cornwall have much higher than average rates of teenage conceptions, and it is vital that young people are able to access schemes like the C-Card, good quality relationships and sex education, support from well-trained professionals and young people-friendly contraceptive and sexual health services.”

Evidence has shown that access to a full range of contraception and sexual health services which are young people- friendly, and consistent relationships and sex education from an early age, are key to reducing rates of teenage conceptions, rates of sexually transmitted infections and in protecting young people from sexual exploitation and abuse.

The C-Card scheme is one of the initiatives delivered in Cornwall to support young people’s sexual health and wellbeing.

Young people who register for a C-Card are shown how to use condoms correctly, given information about healthy relationships and sexual health and receive their own C-Card. This can then be used to get free condom packs from anywhere they see the C-Card sign at over 200 organisations in Cornwall.

Councillor Andrew Wallis, Lead member for Children’s Services commented, “The C-Card scheme, plus the other strands of education and information, are clearly having a good effect on the teenage conception rates in Cornwall. However, there is still more work to be done and this includes a consistent approach to RSE education both locally in Cornwall and nationally; which will enable young people and their parents to have the right information.”

Emergency contraception is another way of reducing unintended pregnancies, both in teenagers and the rest of the population. The Family Planning Association has launched a campaign to raise awareness of emergency contraception, as their survey of 2,000 women showed that 39 per cent of women aged 16 to 54 thought asking for emergency contraception was embarrassing, and said there is still a stigma around it. This rose to 52 per cent among 16-24-year-olds.

Denis Cronin, a consultant in public health, said: “Accessing emergency contraception to prevent an unintended pregnancy is a responsible thing to do and shouldn’t feel embarrassing. Emergency contraception is available from most pharmacies in Cornwall, GP services and sexual health and contraception services.”

To learn more about the types of emergency contraception and where they are available, in addition to the C-Card and other sexual health related topics, you can go to the SHAC website at www.cornwallshac.org.uk/.

Professionals working with young people can also access free training in Cornwall to help them support and help young people appropriately when it comes to relationship and sexual health issues.