Starting sex in East London: protective and risk factors for starting to have sex amongst Black and Minority Ethnicity young people in East London Paper 1 of 4 papers prepared for the Teenage Pregnancy Unit Authors: Shamser Sinha, Katherine Curtis, Amanda Jayakody, Russell Viner, Helen Roberts and the Research with East London Adolescents Community Health Survey (RELACHS). a This is one of four papers for practitioners produced on the basis of work carried out in the London boroughs of Hackney, Newham and Tower Hamlets. Further details of our methods can be found in the endnotes of each paper and in our methods paper. All quotations are taken from focus groups with young people, unless otherwise stated. We are grateful to the Teenage Pregnancy Unit, Department for Education & Skills and the Department of Health for funding this work, and our policy recommendations should be considered within the broader programme of work emerging from the TPU at this time. Key Findings • Compared to national data for under 16 year olds, a smaller proportion of our East London sample (25% of young men and 11% of Young women) reported ever having had sex. • There were significant ethnic differences in reported sexual behaviour amongst teenagers aged 13 to 16 years in East London. Bangladeshi, Pakistani and Indian young people of both sexes were least likely to report ever having had sex, whilst Black Caribbean and Mixed Ethnicity young men reported much higher sexual activity than did White British young men. • Of those who had had sex, 38% had done so at or before 13 years of age (this group made up 6% of the overall sample). Starting sex at or before 13 years of age was more common amongst Black Caribbean and White Other young people than among White British teenagers. • Despite differences, knowing someone’s ethnicity was not a shortcut to knowing their attitude to sexual relationships. Young people from all backgrounds told us that they needed effective services that take their varying needs into account. • Young men’s perception that their parents disapprove of their physical relationships appears to be related to later onset of starting to have sex. b • Young people told us that they valued the support and advice of peers in relation to intimate relationships. • Young people from Bangladeshi and Pakistani backgrounds reported drawing on extended families as sources of advice and support.