Tuesday, February 17, 2009

Thirteen year old dad not uncommon

http://tvnz.co.nz/national-news/thirteen-year-old-dad-not-uncommon-2491517

Thirteen year old dad not uncommon

6:34PM Tuesday February 17, 2009
(Source: ONE News)
ONE News
The story of a boy in the UK who became a father at 13, sent shockwaves around Britain, but statistics show there are large numbers of young parents also in New Zealand.
Baby faced Alfie Patten's daughter, Maisie, was conceived when he was just 12. Her mother, Shantelle, was 15 when she gave birth.
ONE News asked Statistics New Zealand to go back through the records to find out the age of New Zealand's youngest parents.
The never before published data shows that in 2007, the most recent year for which figures are available, New Zealand had 15 new fathers aged 13-14.
That is the most on record.
The figures are even higher for girls.
In the same year, one new mum was registered at 12 years old, six at 13, and 45 at 15 - which is Shantelle's age.

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