The number of women becoming pregnant over the age of 40 is accelerating at a record rate, while teen abortions continue to rise, new figures show. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) recorded the largest yearly increase in the conception rate for women in their 40s in 2006, which has almost doubled since 1991.

While teenage conceptions are falling, the Government is still set to miss its target to halve under-18 pregnancies by 2010. The overall conception rate in England and Wales rose by nearly 3 per cent between 2005 and 2006 for all women aged 15 and over.

Most pregnancies occurred among women aged 25-29, but the rate for those aged 40-44 achieved the largest increase — more than 6 per cent from 11.5 conceptions per 1,000 women in 2005, to 12.2 in 2006.

The national rise was mainly attributed to social and economic factors, with more women choosing to put their career before starting a family. The growing popularity of IVF treatment may also play a part, but doctors say that older mothers may be risking their own health and that of their babies by delaying pregnancy until later in life.

Over-40s in London were most likely to be pregnant, with a rate of 22 women per 1,000. In the North East the rate was only 7.3 per 1,000.

Although Britain’s teenage pregnancy rate is the highest in Western Europe, in recent years there has been a slight fall. In 2006 the conception rate among 15 to 17-year-olds fell from 41.4 to 40.7 conceptions per 1,000 girls.

But the percentage of conceptions leading to a legal abortion rose by 4.9 per cent for the under 16s and by 4.5 per cent for all girls under 18.

The Government has pledged to halve the number of pregnancies of under-18s by the end of the decade, from a baseline figure set in 1998. But the rate has so far reduced by only 13 per cent, the statistics show.

Beverley Hughes, Minister for Children, Young People and Families, singled out local authorities yesterday where teenage pregnancy levels were “unacceptably high”. She said that she was publishing teenage pregnancy trends for every local authority, “so that everyone can see where progress has been excellent and where performance must improve”.

Places such as Torbay, Stockton-on-Tees, Norfolk and Leeds were among the problem areas, whereas Hackney and South Tyneside were the best performers. If all areas were doing as well as the top 25 per cent, “our national reduction would be more than double — and on track to meet our 2010 target”, Ms Hughes said.

In total, there were an estimated 866,800 conceptions in England and Wales in 2006, compared with 841,800 in 2005. The pregnancy rate in 2006 peaked for women aged 25-29, at 129 conceptions per 1,000 women. The ONS said that nearly four-fifths of all conceptions resulted in a birth or multiple births — 748,600 in Britain in 2006. Since 1995 pregnancies occurring outside marriage have also increased from 47 per cent to 56 per cent in 2006.

Belinda Phipps, chief executive of the National Childbirth Trust, said that women who had prospects of a good education and career were most likely to delay pregnancy. “Most women are either trying for a baby relatively early, while in their twenties, or waiting until they are 35 or 40 for economic reasons and for the biological clock to start ticking. Celebrities like Madonna are also acting as role models and showing women that it is more acceptable to wait until later in life before starting a family.”

Peter Bowen-Simpkins, a consultant obstetrician and spokesman for the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, said that the likelihood of miscarriage, stillbirth and other problems in pregnancy increased significantly for women over the age of 40. “Rates of miscarriage increase from a baseline of 15 per cent to more than 25 per cent once the mother is over 40, and from 42 the risks increase even further,” he said. “There is also a greater chance of a baby born to an older mother having Down’s syndrome and other congenital abnormalities.” Older mothers are also more likely to have high blood pressure, diabetes or to require a Caesarean section delivery.

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