Pregnant at 14, next bub at 16: Teen parents just ask for a chance to raise their children

CHEYANNE Eastment-Cameron is 16 and pregnant with her second baby to boyfriend Brendan, the face of a new teen pregnancy dilemma confronting authorities - youngsters who choose to start families.

• Teen parents Jayden and Jenifer targeted by ‘firebomb’
• OPINION: Let’s not let down our teen parents

SHE is just 16 and is already expecting her second child. But instead of worrying about how she will cope, Cheyanne Eastment-Cameron believes young teens should be given a chance to care for their own babies if they are able to.

Cheyanne was only 14 when she ­became pregnant with her daughter Brenda, now one. She is now pregnant again, having just turned 16.

By sharing her story with The Daily Telegraph, Cheyanne has become the face of a new trend among young teenagers who want to be parents.

Brendan Nelson is 18. He and his girlfriend Cheyanne Cameron-Eastment, 16, already have a one-year-old daughter, Brenda. They’re now expecting another child. Picture: Jonathan Ng

“Most of my friends that are young and become parents, they have been doing a really good job,” she said.

The Hebersham teen said she knew plenty of people who were teenage parents: “The youngest is probably 14.”

Cheyanne and her boyfriend Brendan Nelson, who turned 18 last week, are also close friends with 14-year-old Jayden Lavender and 15-year-old Jenifer Morrison, who sparked a massive police search — also last week — when they fled Nepean Hospital with their three-day-old baby.

Cheyanne was only 14 when she ­became pregnant with her Brenda. She’s just turned 16 and again pregnant. Picture: Jonathan Ng

READ MORE: Runaway teen parents: ‘They made the mistake of being young’

NSW Health Minister Brad Hazzard warned against the trend of teen pregnancies.

“Many young parents are ill-equipped to bring up children,” Mr Hazzard said.

Cheyanne, who turned 16 in January, is one of more than a dozen girls aged 14 or under who fall pregnant in NSW each year, according to data from NSW Health.

In 2015, there were 70 mums aged just 15 and 190 aged 16. A staggering 2641 girls and women aged 15 to 19 gave birth in 2015 in NSW — which is more than seven a day.

Cheyanne turned 16 in January and is already expecting her second child. Picture: Jonathan Ng

“Most of my friends that are young and become parents”. Picture: Jonathan Ng

Overall, teenage pregnancies have ­fallen slightly over the past decade, but the number of pregnancies among 15-year-olds in NSW has remained reasonably constant.

Cheyanne, who met Brendan two years ago, said she believed that Jayden and Jenny should be ­allowed to have a go at ­caring for their baby, like she has been able to.

“They should be allowed to have the baby. They are good with kids and every teen parent should be given a chance,” she said.

Brendan, who is best friends with Jayden, agreed. “I reckon teen parents should be given a chance to prove they can do it. They should get a trial so they prove they can do it,” he said. “The amount of times Jayden used to come over, even Jenny, they would volunteer to help with Brenda ... they can do it.”

Cheyanne’s mother Leeanne Cameron said she was “very proud” of her daughter. “She is going pretty well for her age, she’s looking after Brenda really well,” she said.

Jenifer Morrison and Jayden Lavender with baby Aria and his mother, Tracy, after they were happily found safe and well after skipping hospital. Picture: Justin Sanson

Jenifer and Jayden talk to Channel 7 the following day. Picture: Channel 7.

Ms Cameron’s youngest son, Shannon, is 22 and is expecting his fourth child in two weeks. He had his first at the age of 15, like Cheyanne.

Cheyanne and Brenda live with Ms Cameron, while Brendan lives with his family. Brendan said he suffered from anxiety around big groups of people so wasn’t working. However, he plans to go to TAFE and study IT.

“I get enough from the government. They give you enough to support yourself and the baby (so) you can live and not stress,” Cheyanne said.

‘CHILDREN HAVING CHILDREN IS NEVER A GOOD IDEA’

HEALTH Minister Brad Hazzard has urged parents to intervene on NSW’s child pregnancy crisis as new figures show around seven teenagers a day are giving birth, including many under 14s.

Teen pregnancy rates are falling slowly in NSW and across Australia as education and parenting improves, along with the availability of contraception and morning after pill.

But a hardcore of very young children are still falling pregnant, often by choice, with the latest available data showing there were 15 mums aged 14 or younger in 2015.

The youngest mum in recent memory in NSW was just 12 years-old.

The girl, from the state’s central west, fell pregnant to her 15-year-old boyfriend in 2009, with authorities later admitting they should have intervened at a far earlier stage after it emerged the girl was allowed to share her boyfriend’s bed since aged 11.

NSW Minister for Health and Medical Research Brad Hazzard. Picture: Troy Snook

Mr Hazzard urged parents to speak with their young teenagers and dissuade them having children “too early”.

“The evidence is pretty clear that it’s much more challenging for very young people to become effective parents,” he told the Daily Telegraph.

“The decision to be parents brings about the most onerous task that two people could possibly undertake.

“The sad truth is that many young parents end up ill-equipped to bring up children.

“I would counsel the parents to do everything possible to dissuade their young teenagers from having children too early.”

In 2015 there were 70 mums aged just 15 and 190 aged 16.

Overall, 2641 females aged 15-19 gave birth in 2015 in NSW — just over seven a day, with a leading child psychologist Michael Carr-Gregg saying teen mums and dads are generally not equipped for parenting.

“Children having children is never a very good idea,” he said.

“It completely disrupts their normal peer relationships, it disrupts their emancipation from adult carers.

Labor’s families and community services spokesman Tania Mihailuk.

Teen parenting expert and author Michael Carr-Gregg.

“It really disrupts their education to the point where many of these young women in particular end up dropping out and therefore end up booking themselves on a treadmill of poverty for the foreseeable future.

“And lastly it compromises their capacity to figure out the question to “who am I”, which is the question all teenagers need to be asking.”

Mr Carr-Gregg backed Mr Hazzard’s calls for adult parents to steer young teenagers away from becoming pregnant.

It is understood that a statistically high proportion of young teenagers who fall pregnant in NSW are from “dysfunctional” families or are influenced by mental illness or substance abuse.

NSW Health data shows that the highest number of teen pregnancies in NSW during 2015 was recorded in the Hunter and New England region, followed by southwest Sydney, western Sydney and western NSW.

Labor’s families and community services spokesman Tania Mihailuk told the Daily Telegraph: “Questions need to be asked about whether a robust assessment of these vulnerable young parents are being undertaken to determine their parental capabilities to care for a newborn.

“Have they undertaken parenting programs, are they prepared to be monitored and assessed and can they demonstrate sound judgment?

“The (Family and Community Services) minister must guarantee that resources are in place to ensure that FACS are notified in the early stages of pregnancy and are able to thoroughly assess these vulnerable minors’ capacity to provide a safe home for a newborn, ultimately the safety of the newborn is paramount.”