Oldham tops teen pregnancy table

OLDHAM’S teenage pregnancy rate is the highest in Greater Manchester, new figures show.

According to the Office of National Statistics, 156 girls aged 15-17 fell pregnant in 2014, a rate of 34.7 per 1,000 girls in the age bracket.

The rate is an increase on the past two years of 30.6 per 1,000 in 2013 and 33.1 per 1,000 in 2012.

The most recent figures are the highest since 2011, when the conception rate was 36.5 per 1,000 girls.

In England and Wales, the rate continued to fall to a record low, with 22.9 conceptions per 1,000 girls aged 15 to 17, a total of 22,653 conceptions.

In Greater Manchester, Manchester recorded the second-highest rate, at 32.3 per 1,000 girls, while Trafford recorded the lowest rate of 16.

Councillor Eddie Moores, Cabinet member for health and wellbeing, said: “Between 2000-2014, there has been around a 35 per cent decrease in the number of teenage conceptions in Oldham. But it is disappointing to see the recent data.”