Pregnancy is a physiological condition; it is the duration in which the fetus develops inside the womb or the uterus. Pregnancy normally lasts for 40 weeks, or around nine months, as measured from the last menstrual period to delivery. In the United Kingdom,
have fallen year-on-year in the last decade, and in 2021 the live birth rate amounted to 10.7 births per 1,000 population. This measures as a total of over 694 thousand
in 2021.
Trends in teenage pregnancies
In developed countries, teenage pregnancies are considered somewhat of a controversial social issue. In recent decades, the UK had high
conception rates among those aged under 18 years. The British government launched a teenage pregnancy strategy in 1999 intending to halve teenage pregnancy numbers in England. The intervention has seen results, in England and Wales in 2021, there were around 43 thousand teenage conceptions, this number had been slowly and steadily declining since 2007, when there were over 106.3 thousand teenage pregnancies. This change also coincides with data that suggests women are delaying pregnancy to older ages.
Fertility rates for women in the age groups under 30 years have generally been decreasing in recent years, while the
mean age for a woman giving birth in the UK has risen.
Maternal health
The number of conceptions does not lead to an equal number of childbirths, this number is reduced by pregnancy outcomes such as stillbirths, miscarriages, and abortions. Laws and policies surrounding abortion are the same in England, Wales, and Scotland, under the law abortion is legally allowed up to 24 weeks. However, in Northern Ireland, the abortion laws are more restrictive, sometimes forcing women to travel to other countries in the UK to seek access to abortion. In 2021, there were around 214 thousand
abortions performed in England and Wales. In comparison in only 87
pregnancies were terminated in Northern Ireland in the same period. During pregnancy, maternal health is of utmost importance for positive and healthy outcomes. Depending on the employment status and eligibility, pregnant women in the UK are entitled to statutory maternity pay or maternity allowance. In 2021/22, the UK government spent over 2.6 billion British pounds on
statutory maternity pay.
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