Social issues of teenage pregnancy

The UK has the highest rate of teenage pregnancies in Western Europe and within the UK higher rates are found amongst women who live in areas of higher deprivation and have other factors such as lower educational achievement or living in state care homes. Teenage pregnancy can be a positive event for some young women. However, there are a number of adverse social outcomes associated with teenage motherhood in the UK, including being more likely to live in poverty, being unemployed or having lower salaries and educational achievements than their peers. Furthermore, children of teenage mothers are more likely to become teenage parents themselves. Strategies to tackle social issues associated with teenage pregnancy need to involve concurrent interventions, including education, skill building, clinical and social support for teenage mothers and contraception services for young people and pregnant teenagers.