Church of England Raises Concerns Over Teen STDs

The Church of England and specialists have recently set up a conference to talk about teenagers contracting sexually transmitted diseases.

Talks took place in Shropshire where they discussed what is termed "the growing sexual health crisis amongst teenagers".

Clergy and health professionals took part in the discussions at the Royal Shrewsbury Hospital.

The Bishop of Lichfield, the Rt Rev Jonathan Gledhill, said it was important to understand the problem.

Bishop Jonathan said: "We've all read the articles about the huge increase in sexually transmitted infections, particularly among the young.

"Some experts say that the situation is out of control and one of the major health problems of our time."

Clergy and community leaders from the Lichfield Diocese area, which covers north Shropshire, Staffordshire and parts of the Black Country, were invited to the talks.

Featured topics included sexually transmitted diseases, teenage pregnancy, contraception, pregnancy terminations and the role of the voluntary sector.