Report on developing health communities

Report on
Developing health communities

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TABLE OF CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION .......................................................................................................................... 3
BACKGROUND ............................................................................................................................ 3
Relevant political drivers ............................................................................................................ 4
Problems that the project will deal with ..................................................................................... 5
THEORETICAL BASIS FOR THE PROJECT ............................................................................. 6
Aims of the project.......................................................................................................................6
Theoretical approach and models ............................................................................................... 6
Alternatives considered but dismissed.........................................................................................8
Critical examination and evaluation of previous projects............................................................8
METHODS OF EVALUATION ....................................................................................................9
CONCLUSION .............................................................................................................................10
REFERENCES ............................................................................................................................. 11

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INTRODUCTION
The present project is a funding proposal which proposes to develop health communities
by resolving the issue of teenage pregnancy in the Wolverhampton area of England. Teenage
pregnancy is a serious issue in UK which comes with unique challenges. It brings negative
consequences for adolescent females as well as the baby. UK has the highest rate of teenage
pregnancy in the world (Chorley, 2014). However, the health of people in the area of
Wolverhampton is generally worse than the England average. The levels of teenage pregnancy
are also worse than the England average.
Therefore, the present funding proposal is aimed at the teenage girls of Wolverhampton.
It will consider interventions at school and community levels to prevent teenage pregnancies in
the area. The present funding proposal will provide a background which will act as a justification
to the proposed project. Theoretical basis for the project has also been provided which includes
models that best apply to the project. Critical evaluation of previous projects has been done.
Lastly, the funding proposal has considered methods of evaluation.

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(Source: Teenage pregnancy rates through England and Wales, 2011)
Relevant political drivers
The rationale of the funding proposal is linked to the government policy to a great extent.
Teenage pregnancy has become a serious problem in UK. The government is concerned about
this problem and has undertaken various efforts for reducing the rate of teenage pregnancy in the
nation (Petersen and et.al., 2009). United Kingdom has the highest rate of teenage pregnancy and
hence, the government is focused upon dealing with the issue. Moreover, the problem is to be

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dealt sternly in the deprived areas of London where young people are more vulnerable to suffer
from this problem. The aim of the government policies is to provide education to the teenagers
about sexual health and to make them aware of the various services available in this area. They
are also aimed at providing counseling services to the teenagers so that the rate of teenage
pregnancy can be reduced (Boonstra, 2011). This is in alignment with the rationale of the
funding proposal. The proposal has been created with the aim of obtaining funds so that effective
interventions can be undertaken to prevent and control the rate teenage pregnancy in the area of
Wolverhampton.
Furthermore, it is evident that increased number of teenage pregnancies in this area are
due to the reason that people are deprived of the basic facilities such as education, health care etc.
there is high rate of unemployment in the area (Raymond and et.al., 2008). Teenage girls living
in the most deprived areas are not able to access health care services. Policies of the government
are formulated keeping in mind the above mentioned aspects. They aim at supporting the people
in the deprived areas ad provide them with equal opportunities to access health care services.
Hence, the present funding proposal is needed as it is aptly linked to the government policy and
supports it in the achievement of the objectives of reducing teenage pregnancy (Johns, Dickins
and Clegg, 2011). Considering the teenage pregnancy levels in the area, this proposal will be
delivered in Wolverhampton.
Localism Act 2011 is an act of parliament of United Kingdom. This act is responsible for
changing the powers of local government in England. The aim of the Localism Act 2011 is to
facilitate devolution of decision making powers from the central government so that these can be
distributed to the individuals and communities (A plain English guide to the Localism Act, 2011).
This act has facilitated the shift of power from the government to the communities and people.
The Localism Act will contribute to the funding proposal by providing an opportunity to bring
forwards the ideas and interventions towards tackling the problem of teenage pregnancy. People
have little opportunity to tackle the problems in the ways they want (Rolleri and et.al., 2008). As
a result of this, the potential contribution of the voluntary and community groups is neglected. It

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is worth noticing that some of the most innovative and effective works in the public welfare are
carried out by this people. Localism Act provides encouragement to these people and also to the
present funding proposal (Hampshire and et.al., 2011). This is because, through the Act, new
significant rights are passed directly to the people and communities. With the help of these right,
it becomes easier to undertaken various interventions and achieve the ambition of tackling
teenage pregnancy issue in the area of Wolverhampton.
Problems that the project will deal with
There are few problems which the project will deal with. The current education system of
Wolverhampton is not efficient enough to control the problem of teenage pregnancy. The area
has teenage pregnancy levels which are worse than England average. This clear;y indicates that
the education system needs to be reformed (Pike, 2007). The problem here is associated with
introduction with a system of sex education which not only educates the teenagers about biology
but also about relationships. The existing education system, which includes sex education has not
been effective enough in making young people aware and knowledgeable about the issue of
teenage pregnancy and its consequences (Sonfield and Pollack, 2013). This problem will be dealt
by the project which will aim at developing effective interventions and solutions for reforming
the education system of the area.
Another problem which is associated with the issue of teenage pregnancy is that this
problem is more common in the highly deprived areas (McCave, 2007). Wolverhampton is one
of the most deprived areas of UK. Basic facilities like education, health care, adolescent
counseling etc. are not available to the teenagers in this area. The funding proposal will deal with
this problem. Along with reforming the education system, it will aim at making rte various
services available to the people. Also, it will make it possible that the interventions reach
maximum number o teenagers in the area.

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THEORETICAL BASIS FOR THE PROJECT
Aims of the project
The project aims at improving the sexual health of people in Wolverhampton by tackling
the problem of teenage pregnancy. It is intended to implement various interventions which will
help in making the teenagers more aware about sexual health thereby providing them the
required support and guidance.
The present funding proposal aims to achieve the following:
To reduce the rate of teenage pregnancy in Wolverhampton
To make people aware about the negative consequences of teenage pregnancy in
Wolverhampton
To support teenagers by providing them sexual health services, counseling and education
in Wolverhampton
Theoretical approach and models
There are various models of health promotion which can be suitable for the present project.
Beattie's Model
Beattie's model, developed in 1991, sets out four main strategies for promoting the health
of people (Fletcher, 2012). These strategies are the following:
Health persuasion- This comprises of interventions which are directed at individuals.
Professionals such as community nurse or midwife undertake these interventions
(Grobler and et.al., 2007).
Personal counseling- This strategy consists of client led interventions which aim at
encouraging individuals to make choices on their own.
Community development- These interventions are undertaken within a defined
community so that thee local health issues can be identified. This strategy aims at

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working with the local people and taking actions towards the identified health problems
(Anning and Ball, 2008).
Legislative action- These are legislative interventions which are undertaken to protect
the health of the community.
Beatie's model can be applied for sexual health promotion regarding the issue of teenage
pregnancy. The strategy of health persuasion can be used for bringing behavior change in the
teenagers. This can be done through education and provision of advice. Teenagers are in need o
guidance and counseling in the matters of sexual education (Jackson and et.al, 2012). Therefore,
this strategy can be used to spread awareness about the issues of teenage pregnancy through
mass media and social marketing. Counseling services can be made available for the teenagers
where they can learn about their sexual health. Safer sex education can be provided to the
teenagers. At the next level, personal counseling can be used for empowering individuals to
make changes. Young people can be provided help in identifying their own health concerns.
Further, the school nurses and counselors can work with them to develop their confidence and
skills (Hoggart and Phillips, 2011). Youth workers can also undertake group work for building
confidence and skills. Another intervention at this level could be school nurse drop- inns. Further,
the next strategy according to Beatie's model, which is community development, can be used for
raising awareness among the local people regarding negative consequences of teenage pregnancy.
Teenage pregnancy prevention campaigns will also form a part of this strategy. At the level of
the fourth strategy, policy can be made for prevention of teenage pregnancy (Kenny and et.al.,
2012). Implementation of this policy can be undertaken in the area of Wolverhampton.
Theory of reasoned action
According to this theory, there are two factors that cause behavioral intent. They are
attitudes and subjective norms. Attitudes towards an act comprises of the positive or negative
feelings of an individual about performing a behavior. This is determined through the assessment
of beliefs of a person. In contrast to this, subjective norm is defined as the perception of an
individual as to how important do people around the individual think that a particular behavior

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should be performed. Based on individual attitude and subjective norms, people make conscious
choices regarding their behavior (Research Summaries, 2016). Theory of reasoned action helps
in understanding the specific beliefs, attitudes and norms which influence teenagers and make
them adopt sexual behavior at an early age. By gaining knowledge about the ways in which
individual behavior leads to teenage pregnancy, effective interventions can be undertaken in the
direction. Theory of reasoned action can be used for understanding the sexual behavior of
teenagers. This is because, among adolescents sexual behavior is characterized to be unplanned
and impulsive. Beliefs, values, attitudes of teenagers about sex impact their behavioral intentions
and make them engage in early sexual activity (Amoran, 2012). Teenagers also experience
increased peer pressure from their friends, classmates and other per groups to engage in sexual
activity. This can be regarded as the subjective norms. Hence, by understanding these factors
which influence teenage behavior, their behavior can be changed by adopting various methods.
This helps in health promotion in the area of teenage pregnancy.
Alternatives considered but dismissed
There are other models as well which were considered for the theoretical basis. However,
these were dismissed due to various reasons. Health belief model is regarded as a psychological
health behavior change model. It helps in explaining and predicting health related behaviors.
According to this model, there are various factors which explain the engagement of an individual
in health promoting behavior (Joyce and Yates, 2011). These include beliefs about health
problems, perceived benefits of action, barriers to action and self efficacy. However, it can be
critically analysed that for tackling the problem of teenage pregnancy in an impoverished area
like Wolverhampton, there is a need to consider other factors as well which influence health
behaviors. As young people in this area are deprived of the basic facilities and services, this
influences their health behavior. This is one of the reasons behind high rates of teenage
pregnancy in Wolverhampton (Hoggart, 2012). Hence, health belief model was dismissed and
not applied for health promotion to tackle the issue of teenage pregnancy.

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Critical examination and evaluation of previous projects
Every child matter and Youth Matters program was undertaken to reshape children's and
young people's services. The program offered an opportunity to identify the risk factors which
are associated with teenage pregnancy. It also provided a chance to the young people to make
positive choices about their health (Teenage Pregnancy, 2010). However, it can be critically
evaluated that the programmed lacked in various aspects in influencing young people's decisions
about their sexual behavior. As per the program, messages were sent to the young girls and
making them aware about the negative consequences of making sexual contact at an early age.
However, these did not prove to be effective in bringing a behavior change in teenagers. It can be
critically analysed that in Wolverhampton, there is a need to make counseling and support
services available for the teenagers. Merely sending messages would not help in eradicating the
problem of teenage pregnancy in an area which is much deprived than other areas of UK (Baird
and Porter, 2011). This indicates that the present funding proposal need to devise and implement
strategies at the school as well as the community level in Wolverhampton.
Another project was Teenage Pregnancy Strategy which was launched with the target to
half the rate of under 18 contraception by the year 2010. The strategy was launched in 1999 and
shows steady progress (Luttrell, 2014). However, it can be critically analysed that the levels of
teenage pregnancy in Wolverhampton are worse than England average. This indicates that the
strategy may have worked in other areas of UK but it has not been effective in the city of
Wolverhampton. The issue of teenage pregnancy has become a serious concern in the area.
Considering the loopholes in the Teenage Pregnancy Strategy, there is a need to effectively
deliver strategies at the local level. There is a need to strengthen the implementation of
counseling and education interventions within the area and focus on 'hot spot' neighborhoods and
young people who are at high risk (Annas and Mariner, 2011). Further, the present funding
proposal is required to address poor progress in the areas such as use of contraception, provision
of sexual health services etc.

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METHODS OF EVALUATION
The proposal needs to be evaluated in order to demonstrate its quality. This is important
for the measurement of effectiveness and contribution of the proposal to dealing with the issues
of teenage pregnancy in Wolverhampton. For this, there is availability of a number of evaluation
tools and frameworks which can be used for assessing the present funding proposal to tackle the
problem o teenage pregnancy (Johns, Dickins and Clegg, 2011). Formative evaluation can be
undertaken to assess the effectiveness of the proposed funding project. This will be associated
with process evaluation. It will include acquisition and development of necessary resources. In
order to implement the proposal, there will be requirement of resources in physical, human,
financial form. By examining the resources requires, the current project can be evaluated.
Another method that can be used for evaluating the present funding proposal is survey
and questionnaire. These are instruments which can be used after implementation of the project.
These effectively help in determining whether the desired changes have occurred over time
(Fletcher, 2012). Moreover, another strength of questionnaires and surveys is that these can be
used at one point in time and hence are effective at determining the status of the issue of teenage
pregnancy in Wolverhampton.

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CONCLUSION
From the report, it can be concluded that Wolverhampton is one of the most deprived
areas in UK. It suffers from the problem of teenage pregnancy which has become a serious
concern for the city. The levels of teenage pregnancy in Wolverhampton are worse than the
England average. Teenage pregnancy has serious negative consequences for both the teenage
mother as well as the child. It exposes the child as well as the mother to various health risks. This
generates the need for implementing the funding proposal in Wolverhampton. Beattie's model
and theory of reasoned action can form the theoretical basis for the proposal. For evaluating the
proposal various methods can be used. These are formative evaluation, summative evaluation
and surveys and questionnaires.
REFERENCES
● Annas, G. J. and Mariner, W. K., 2011. Women and Children Last—The Predictable Effects
of Proposed Federal Funding Cuts. New England Journal of Medicine. 364(17). pp.1590-
1591.
● Anning, A. and Ball, M., 2008. Improving services for young children: from Sure Start to
children's centres. Sage.
● Baird, A. S. and Porter, C. C., 2011. Teenage pregnancy: strategies for
prevention. Obstetrics, Gynaecology & Reproductive Medicine.
● Boonstra, H. D., 2011. Teen pregnancy among young women in foster care: A
primer. Guttmacher Policy Review.
● Fletcher, J. M., 2012. The effects of teenage childbearing on the short-and long-term health
behaviors of mothers. Journal of Population Economics.

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