TEENAGE pregnancies are on the rise in a North-East town because schools are dropping sex education, MPs have been told.

Darlington Borough Council raised the alarm in evidence to a parliamentary inquiry into whether sex and relationships education (SRE) should be compulsory.

The authority backed the move – arguing sex education should be given “the same level of importance as academic subjects such as maths, English and science”.

And it went further, by questioning the impact of allowing free schools and academies – which are independent from local councils – to drop all such lessons.

All secondary schools in the town, and all but nine primaries, have broken free from the town hall, encouraged by the Government which argues standards will rise.

But, the authority wrote: “Some key support staff locally have reported an increase in teenage conceptions and more vulnerable teenage parents being discussed at MARAC [Multi-Agency Risk Assessment Conference] from a younger age.

“Anecdotally, there is some feeling that the reduction in SRE teaching since schools received academy status is a factor.”

Watchdog Ofsted has raised the alarm over poor sex education in one in three schools, leaving pupils vulnerable to sexual exploitation and pressures from online pornography.

But, last year, the Government defeated a Labour amendment which attempted to make SRE compulsory - partly over autonomy for ‘free schools’ and academies.

The education select committee is exploring whether Personal, Social, Health and Economic education (PSHE) - including Sex and Relationships Education (SRE) – should be statutory in schools.

In its evidence, Darlington Borough Council said its support for the switch was echoed by “staff in health, education and youth services”.

It wrote: “There is a clear message that people think PSHE should be statutory as part of the national curriculum.”

The Labour-run authority welcomed recent Government guidance on teaching about consent, abuse and cyber-bullying, but said it was inadequate.

Last year, the Darlington Youth Parliament had backed “a curriculum to prepare us for life” among its five top priorities, it wrote.

And, in Darlington, teachers had called for greater support in teaching about “the impact of pornography and age appropriateness”.

The council wrote: “Whilst topics such as contraception, puberty, STIs and abortion are referenced, pornography and sexting are not - and there is little mention of internet safety.

Meanwhile, schools in ‘special measures’ – and under huge pressure to improve quickly – found it difficult to find the time for sex and relationships education.

The evidence reads: “It is important that these schools are given appropriate support as they are situated in deprived areas and have a number of vulnerable pupils attending.”