Teenage pregnancy rates fell across mid Wales in 2020, new figures show — with the lockdowns that prevented teens from socializing behind the fall.

Declines in teens under the age of 18 falling pregnant were recorded in Gwynedd, Powys and Carmarthenshire, with only a slight rise in the teen pregnancies in Ceredigion that same year.

It comes despite a fall in conception rates across England and Wales, with the first year of the coronavirus pandemic having a particular impact on teenage pregnancies.

The British Pregnancy Advisory Service said the pandemic and measures introduced in response “have clearly had very different impacts” on the reproductive choices of women of different ages and backgrounds.

Office of National Statistics figures show there were 25 conceptions to girls aged under-18 in Gwynedd in 2020.

This was down from 39 in 2019, and the lowest number since 1998, when records began.

They were among 12,576 under-18 pregnancies nationally in 2020.

The conception rate among under-18s in Gwynedd stood at 14.1 per 1,000 girls then.

The teenage conception rate is now at its lowest point since records began, having fallen every year since 2007.

There were 16 teen pregnancies recorded in Ceredigion in 2020 – up from 14 in 2019.

The figures show there were 22 conceptions to girls aged under-18 in Powys in 2020 compared to 24 in 2019.

ONS figures show there were 37 conceptions to girls aged under-18 in Carmarthenshire in 2020. This was down from 47 in 2019, and the lowest number since 1998.

The data reveals there were 683 conceptions to women aged between 15 and 44 in Ceredigion in 2020 – up from 671 in 2019. They were among 817,515 conceptions nationally, marginally down from 821,089 the year prior and marking the fifth consecutive annual fall.

Women aged between 30 and 34 had the most conceptions – in Wales the conception rate among women in this age bracket was 107.3 per 1,000 people in 2020.

In Gwynedd, there were 1,309 conceptions to women aged between 15 and 44 – down from 1,439 in 2019.

In Carmarthenshire, there were 2,050 conceptions to women aged between 15 and 44 – down from 2,115 in 2019.

Katherine O’Brien, spokeswoman for BPAS, said: “Lockdown restrictions which prevented socialising with anyone other than members of your own household will have had a greater impact on women in younger age groups, who will be less likely to have been co-habiting with partners.

“This may be reflected in the sharp decrease in conception rates among those aged under 20, with conceptions rates among under-18s now standing at a record low.”

She said women on low incomes will be feeling anxious about their employment prospects and finances amid the cost-of-living crisis, adding that “these challenges are playing a very significant role in pregnancy decision making”.

But a fall in conceptions nationally has not led to a drop in births, Dr James Tucker, head of health and life events analysis at the ONS, explained.

“Provisional births data indicate that 2021 births actually increased, but that this varied over the year,” said Dr Tucker. “The first half of 2021 saw a decrease in births, all of which would have been conceived in 2020 when conceptions decreased; while the second half of 2021 saw an increase in births, which related to conceptions at the end of 2020 and beginning of 2021.”