Police are investigating after a 12-year-old WA girl gave birth. Photo / Getty Images
Police are investigating after a 12-year-old WA girl gave birth. Photo / Getty Images
The father of a baby who was born to a 12-year-old girl in Western Australia is also believed to be a child, police say.
Perth authorities confirmed yesterday they were investigating a case of a girl who gave birth in a WA hospital after having become pregnant when she was only 11 years old.
A spokeswoman said police were working closely with the families of the young parents, the Department of Communities and the Health Department, AAP reported.
"There are complex social issues, which are being managed by all agencies, and the current priority is to ensure appropriate support is provided to the family," the spokeswoman said.
"The West Australia Police Force has identified a person believed to be the young father of the newborn, who himself is a child and is known to the young mother."
Police said they had no concerns for the welfare of any other children, reports news.com.au.
The WA Department for Communities and Child Protective Services said it had concerns about revealing the identity of the child and her parents when contacted by news.com.au and wasn't able to give individual details about the case.
Because of this, little is known about the girl's pregnancy.
Jackie Tang, of the Department of Communities, would not comment specifically on the case to protect the young girl's identity, but told news.com.au it did work closely with multiple agencies when a young mother gave birth.
"If there are concerns that a child may have been sexually abused or is likely to be sexually abused, Communities undertakes a thorough assessment of the situation," a statement from the agency read.
"A co-ordinated response is required from a range of State Government and external support agencies both in the short and long term in order to make a lasting difference to the wellbeing of all affected parties," she said.
"The Department of Communities, the WA Police and Department of Health work together intensively in the best interests of all concerned."
Federal indigenous health minister Ken Wyatt said he was "troubled" knowing the young mother would not experience a normal childhood.
"She's not going to have the same journey as every one of us in this room that have gone from being a child, to a teenager, to a young adult, and then being in a position to make a better informed decision," he told reporters in Perth, AAP reported.
"Nevertheless, I have no doubt that her family will give her and her child support — but it doesn't make it right."
Mr Wyatt does not know the family and authorities have not revealed whether the girl is indigenous.
WA Health Department statistics show that since 1980, there have been 12 registered births to girls aged 12, the youngest registered age of a birth mother in WA.
Teresa Middleton at the age of 12, when she gave birth to her daughter. Photo / ITV
In 2017 there were three registered births to girls aged 13 or younger, seven registered births to 14-years-olds and 21 registered births to 15-year-olds.
Every year dozens of girls aged 16 years-old give birth in Western Australia.
Teenage pregnancy puts young women at risk for health, economic, social and financial issues.
A study by Susan Mayor, Pregnancy and childbirth are leading causes of death in teenage girls in developing countries, showed women younger than 15 are often not physically developed enough to sustain a healthy pregnancy or give birth.
This story was originally from news.com.au and republished here with permission
