Best Beginnings is committed to improving outcomes for young parents and their children by supporting midwives to develop and deliver maternity services to meet their needs.

What is the National Teenage Pregnancy Midwifery Network?

Founded by two teenage pregnancy specialist midwives in 2001, the online network aims to improve maternity services for young parents and their children by:

• Collecting evidence on what works to improve outcomes
• Enabling midwives (and others) to share good practice and innovative work ideas
• Increasing support for midwives working with young parents
• Producing an e-newsletter twice a year covering policy, practice, research and resources

Read the National Teenage Pregnancy Midwifery Network Newsletters

NOTE WINTER 2020: Like you, we are a bit overstretched right now, so there won't be a winter newsletter. The newsletter will be back for Spring 2021.

Who is the network for?

The network is primarily aimed at midwives working with young parents or with an interest in teenage pregnancy. It includes family nurses, health visitors, young parent workers, infant feeding advisers, peer supporters, commissioners and anyone else interested in the contribution maternity care can make to improving outcomes for teenage parents and their children. It is a free service with over 600 members who receive the e-newsletter twice a year and are invited to contribute their own practice or research experience and ideas.

To contact or join the network please email [email protected] with your name, position and work address.

NOTE: Apologies but we are not able to help students with essays or work experience

Resources for young parents-to-be and young parents

App for young parents-to-be and new parents
Baby Buddy free phone app for parents-to-be and new parents from parent and child charity Best Beginnings.

Publications for young parents
My pregnancy my choice, You and your baby (CHANGE)
Your pelvic floor (leaflet designed by teenagers)

Websites for young parents
littlelullaby.org.uk - Little Lullaby - 'The place for young parents'. Information, chatrooms for young parents, buddying scheme
www.beastar.org.uk/ - breastfeeding website for young mums
Young dads TV - Youtube channel with videos for young dads

Resources for practitioners

Getting maternity services right for pregnant teenagers and young fathers. A practical guide for midwives, doctors, maternity support workers and receptionists (3rd edition, 2015) 

Healthy eating
Pregnant teenagers and diet  (Tommy’s) 
A short guide for professionals who work with pregnant teenagers but don't have specialist training in nutrition.
Eating well in pregnancy: A practical guide to support teenagers (First Steps Nutrition Trust)
A detailed and practical guide including affordable recipes.

Smoking cessation
Talking about smoking in pregnancy (Tommys)
A short guide for professionals who work with pregnant teenagers, focusing on evidence and practical strategies.

Young fathers
Fatherhood Institute research briefing: Young FathersPreventing unplanned second pregnancies
Preventing unplanned second pregnancies - models of service delivery (Network paper)
Antentatal/postnatal sexual health care pathway (Nottingham)
Antenatal contraception care pathway (Hull)  
Postnatal contraception care pathway (Hull) 

Resources developed by network members 

Teenage pregnancy guideline (with needs assessment and care pathway) (Morecombe Bay)

Care pathway for pregnant teenagers (Durham and Darlington)
Care pathway for pregnant teenagers (Liverpool)
Care pathway for pregnant teenagers (Gloucester)
Care pathway for pregnant teenagers (Nottingham)

Care pathway for pregnant teenagers (Mid Essex)
Social History form (Liverpool)
Needs assessment form (Dudley)
Postnatal phone consultation (Liverpool)
Assessment criteria matrix (Isle of Wight)
Referral criteria to teenage pregnancy midwives (Nottingham) 
Hierarchy of specialist support ( Burnley)
Data collection form  (Burnley )
Referral flow chart (Wakefield)
Audit tool  (Gloucester)
Assessing Gillick competency (Bristol)

Publications for commissioners

A framework for supporting teenage mothers and young fathers (Public Health England 2016)

Teenage parents: who cares? A guide to commissioning and delivering maternity services for young parents (2008)  

Teenage pregnancy statistics

Referenced_statistics_on_teenage_pregnancy_2016.docx

Under 18 conceptions data 1998-2017 (Office for National Statistics, 2019)

Young parents' experiences

Herbert_2016_Exploring_teenage_mothers_experiences_of_support_services.pdf