HEALTH chiefs in Burnley, Pendle and Rossendale are turning the corner in the fight against high teenage pregnancy rates.

That was the message which came out of a conference for health and youth workers across the area on how best to tackle the problem.

Despite the area having one of the worst records for teenage pregnancy rates in the country, health chiefs said recent figures, which showed a reduction, meant things were moving in the right direction.

Dr Ellis Friedman, director of public health for Burnley Pendle and Rossendale Primary Care Trust told the conference: "As the figures would suggest, while there remains a significant problem, there are signs that we are getting things right."

The figures show in Burnley, the rate of teenage conceptions has fallen from 74.1 per 1,000 young women in 1998, to 58.4 in 2001. Pendle shows a reduction from 58.8 to 50.9 and teenage conceptions in Rossendale have fallen from 50.7 to 50.2 per 1,000.

Figures released in March of this year showed a decline in the national rate of teenage conceptions from 47.6 per 1,000 in 1998 to 42.5 in 2001. In Lancashire, the rate has fallen from 48.5 per 1,000 to 41.1 over the same period.

The conference, held at the Dunkenhalgh Hotel, Clayton-le-Moors, was organised by Burnley, Pendle and Rossendale PCT. The event was opened by Lancashire Teenage Pregnancy Co-ordinator Wendy Stone and East Lancashire co-ordinator Clare Jackson, who both confirmed rates were falling, especially in Burnley and Pendle.

Plans to halve the teenage pregnancy rate in Lancashire over the next eight years were announced earlier this month. Better education of youngsters on sex, contraception and more support for teenage parents will be at the forefront of the drive.