One in four pregnancies ended in abortion during Covid as conception rates fell in Shropshire
More than a quarter of pregnancies in Shropshire ended in a termination in 2021 and the rates of conception across the county fell due to the pressures caused by Covid-19, new figures show.
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said the data provides understanding of how lockdowns and pandemic restrictions affected people's behaviour.
Figures from the ONS show that there were 3,428 pregnancies in Shropshire in 2021, down from 3,504 the year before.
The rate dropped from 71.3 conceptions per 1,000 women in 2020 to 69 conceptions per 1,000 women in 2021.
While the number of pregnancies increased in Telford and Wrekin up from 2,595 in 2020 to 2,733 in 2021, the ONS said the rate per 1,000 women dropped. There were 77.7 conceptions per 1,000 women in Telford and Wrekin during 2020 but this was down to 77.5 per 1,000 women by 2021.
In Powys, there were 1,325 conceptions in 2021, up from 1,318 the year before, although the rate dropped from 71.6 conceptions per 1,000 women to 70 per 1,000 women.
Across England and Wales, there were nearly 825,000 pregnancies in 2021 - up from 818,000 the year before. It was the first increase in the number of conceptions in the last six years.
However, the rate of conceptions has been declining throughout the same period from 78.3 per 1,000 women in 2015 to 71.5 per 1,000 women in 2021.
Termination rates are also rising. Of the conceptions in Telford and Wrekin in 2021, the ONS said 26.2 per cent led to an abortion – the highest level in the past decade.
While in the rest of Shropshire, 25.3 per cent of conceptions led to an abortion.
The figure was 23.9 per cent in Powys, also – the highest level in the past 10 years.
Across the country, 26.5 per cent of pregnancies in England and Wales led to an abortion, the ONS figures show.
A spokesperson for the British Pregnancy Advisory Service said the pandemic and the Government response to it, had a clear impact on women’s pregnancy choices.
The spokesperson said: "Faced with economic challenges and job insecurity, women and their partners had to make sometimes tough decisions around continuing or ending a pregnancy.
"Unfortunately, financial struggles and a lack of government support, including the two-child limit on financial assistance, continue to force women to choose between ending an otherwise wanted pregnancy or plunging their families in to great hardship."
They added that there is no "right number of abortions" and added there is more the Government can do to ensure women make the right decision for themselves when faced with an unplanned pregnancy.
The figures also showed there were 65 conceptions among women aged under 18 in Telford and Wrekin – a rate of 19.5 per 1,000 for the age group – 65 in Shropshire (12.4 per 1,000 women), and 25 in Powys (11.6 per 1,000 women).
Siân Bradford, ONS child health senior research officer, said the data reveals a higher conception rate among women who were not married or in a civil partnership for the first time since records began.
"Despite a higher percentage of abortions, women who were not married or in a civil partnership, still have a higher number of conceptions leading to maternity. Further work will be needed to establish whether this marks a change in trend,” she added.
The conception rate for women outside of marriage or civil partnership across the two nations rose from 73.4 conceptions per 1,000 women in 2011 to 75.1 conceptions per 1,000 women between in 2021.
Meanwhile, the conception rate for women within marriage or civil partnership decreased from 91.6 conceptions per 1,000 women to 72.2 conceptions per 1,000 women.
