Teens become mothers by choice, survey reveals

 

According to a study for the Joseph Rowntree Foundation (an independent development and social research charity) teens as young as 13 are becoming mothers by choice.

The study based on interviews with 51 young parents aged 13-22 living in six deprived areas of England, revealed that contrary to popular belief, teens were not ignorant of contraception but choose to become parents to make up for their own bad experiences of childhood.

Many of those who took part in the research by the Trust for the Study of Adolescence believe that if they had not become parents, their lives would have worsened because of continued family disruption and unhappiness. Others saw parenthood as an alternative to having a low-paying "dead-end" job and a way to become independent.

Anne Weyman, chief executive of the Family Planning Association (FPA) disagrees - she argues that having children at such a young age only puts them at a greater disadvantage.

"The combined effect of a poor education, periods on benefit, social isolation and few employment opportunities mean that teenage mums experience significant disadvantage compared to those who have children later in life…It's vital that teenagers of both sexes are provided with real alternatives to early parenthood," she said.

Though reducing teenage conception rates is currently priority for the government, the Joseph Rowntree Foundation argues that they have not taken into consideration the cases of adolescents who plan their pregnancies and believe the results of this research will help address support needs for these teens despite critisicm that the study it presents teenage pregnancy as a positive option for some young people.

It’s unquestionable that family surroundings have a huge impact the children. Whether they are having accidental or planned pregnancies the fact remains that children are still having children and as suggested in the study, in hope of creating a loving family.

At the UCKG HelpCentre there is a group to help young single mothers by addressing the issues of teenage parents. This initiative offers teenage mothers not only support and advice, but also a place where they can speak openly to other teenage mothers who have successfully managed to enjoy life with their children as well as move forward with challenges such as education. The group meets every Saturday at 1pm at the UCKG headquarters in Finsbury Park. Call 020 7686 6000 for more information.

 

Released on Friday 30th August 2008