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Publication, Part of

Sexual and Reproductive Health Services, England (Contraception) 2022/23

Accredited official statistics

Publication Date:
28 Sep 2023
Geographic Coverage:
England
Geographical Granularity:
Country, Regions, Local Authorities, Provider, Hospital Trusts, Independent Sector Health Care Providers
Date Range:
01 Apr 2022 to 31 Mar 2023
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Sexual and Reproductive Health Services, England (Contraception) 2022/23

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Introduction
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Summary

This publication primarily covers contraceptive activity taking place at dedicated Sexual and Reproductive Health (SRH) services in England, as recorded in the Sexual and Reproductive Health Activity Dataset (SRHAD), a mandated collection for all providers of NHS SRH services. Data from GP settings and pharmacies is not included (unless otherwise stated). People attend SRH services for a variety of reasons, but the main focus of this report is contraception.

Highlights

Latest available year of data is 2022/23 unless otherwise stated. 

Data is for SRH services only unless otherwise stated.

11% increase in contraception-related contacts with SRH services compared to 2021/22

This is an increase from 0.96 million to 1.07 million contraception-related contacts

Overall contacts (includes those for non-contraception reasons) increased by 11% over the same period

55% uptake of long acting reversible contraceptives

This is a decrease of 1 percentage point, from 56% in 2021/22.

(Includes implants, IU devices, IU systems and injectable contraceptives)

27% uptake of the contraceptive pill

This remains the same as in 2021/22 but down from 39% in 2020/21*, but still the most popular type of method for SRH service users

*Note that at the end of July 2021, progesterone-only pills became available to purchase over the counter at pharmacies without prescription. This is likely to have impacted the number of women needing to attend SRH services for the contraceptive pill, and thus the SRH services uptake figures for this method.

3% more emergency contraceptive items provided by SRH services compared to 2019/20 (pre-Covid pandemic)

Over the last ten years, there has been a steady decline in the number of emergency contraception items provided by both SRH services and at other locations in the community.

Last edited: 27 September 2023 3:25 pm