Evaluation of the Long-Term Effectiveness of Straight Talking

The Tavistock Institute was commissioned by Straight Talking to conduct a longitudinal evaluation of the Straight Talking programme.

Straight Talking is a school based intervention that aims at making school children (aged 13-15) aware of the realities of teenage parenthood. This programme is delivered by young women who themselves have been teenage parents. This builds on the ten year Teenage Pregnancy Strategy (1999-2009), which aims to reduce the high levels of teenage pregnancy in the UK.

The evaluation involved a questionnaire survey of students from schools in Barking and Dagenham, before, immediately after, and months after the intervention, it also involved focus groups with students.