CRE raises concerns about teenage pregnancy targets

Government plans to target girls from black and ethnic minorities in an attempt to reduce teenage pregnancy rates need to be pursued ‘sensitively’, the Commission for Racial Equality (CRE) has said.

Guidance issued to councils and health authorities by Beverly Hughes, the children’s minister, and Caroline Flint, the public health minister, notes with concern that rates of teenage motherhood are significantly higher than average among mothers of ‘black Caribbean’, ‘other black’ and ‘mixed white/black Caribbean’ ethnicity. It says agencies working on teenage pregnancy should have the confidence to reach out to and engage with young people from black and minority ethnic groups.

Ministers say that even when social deprivation and educational achievement are taken into account, pregnancy rates among black and mixed-race girls are much higher than average. They also have proportionately more abortions, accounting for nine per cent of all terminations for women under 18, even though they make up only three per cent of the female population between 15 and 17.

The CRE said: ‘Collecting and analysing data on ethnicity allows people to identify and target health campaigns, for example, at communities according to their specific need. It is important that they then support this by engaging with these communities so that when dealing with sensitive cultural issues, their message is not lost or misunderstood. This can be done through training staff and consulting with community groups.’

Fears over drive to cut black teenage pregnancies, Daily Telegraph, 24 July 2007