Tackling Teenage Pregnancy Is Top Priority For North East England

Main Category: Pregnancy / Obstetrics
Article Date: 02 Jul 2008 - 6:00 PDT

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The results of a comprehensive shake up of council targets and priorities are published today.

Helping troubled teenagers will be the prime focus for local areas in the North East over the next three years - from tackling teenage pregnancy to reducing the numbers of young people who are outside education or jobs.

Reducing the rate of teen pregnancy has been identified as a key priority for 11 out of 12 local authorities in the region including Northumberland, Durham, Newcastle, Gateshead, Sunderland, Hartlepool and Middlesbrough. A similar proportion of councils have pledged to reduce the numbers of 16-18 year olds who have left education but remain out of work.

Other key challenges announced as priorities for the region today include reducing the number of smokers, tackling anti-social behaviour and assault and lowering re-offending rates.

Every local area in England has now agreed its own set of priorities with central government and must devote resources, time and effort to tackling the challenges that will improve the lives of local people in their areas. Extra cash will be available to the highest performing councils. Local people will also be able to see what their council has chosen to prioritise at http://www.localpriorities.communities.gov.uk.

Called Local Area Agreements (LAAs) - local authorities have worked with local service providers such as the Police and Jobcentre Plus to identify key priorities individual to each area.

Nick Brown MP, Regional Minister for the North East said:

"As Regional Minister the key priority is to lift up the prosperity of our region. No one should feel left out and that includes vulnerable teenagers who have left education but remain out of work. I welcome these new initiatives and the extra money which will follow improved Local Authority performance."

Hazel Blears MP, Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, said:

"These new local priorities mean that councils and their partners can concentrate their efforts on the specific needs of the local people they serve. The prizes are enormous: better, more locally relevant public services, a higher quality of life and ultimately more prosperity in communities across the country.

"If knowledge is power, then this is more power to local people. They will be able to see exactly what local government and service providers plan to do in their area, check out how well they are doing, and ask questions if they have not delivered. This means less red tape and more freedom for local authorities to deliver what local people want."

Progress will be tracked by independent auditors and results published, so any need for improvement can be identified quickly and local authorities and service providers be held to account by local people.

Note

1. Local Area Agreements are an important part of putting devolution into practice. LAAs have been negotiated between central government and local authorities, informed by discussion with local communities, so that they really focus in on the priorities that matter to local people.

2. The Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Act 2007 provides a statutory duty on the local authority to prepare an LAA, and a duty on partners named in the LAA to cooperate in the setting of targets. It also provides for these partners to have a duty to have regard to targets in the LAA. The LAA is submitted to, and targets formally designated by, the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government.

3. Central government has reduced the number of indicators which councils in England report on from 1200 to 198. This enables councils and partners to tackle local issues whilst simplifying reporting procedures.

http://www.communities.gsi.gov.uk