A bus poster campaign highlighting the sexual health services available for young people throughout Walsall borough is now on the road.

Walsall Healthcare NHS Trust’s Teenage Pregnancy Prevention Service has organised the focus which features posters on 45 buses covering the Walsall area. These posters detail the contraception and screening clinics that young people can use for support and advice on a range of issues.

Carol Williams, Teenage Pregnancy Operational Lead for the Trust, said: Walsall has previously had high rates of teenage pregnancy however we have more than halved this since the strategy began in 1998.

“Campaigns like this help to raise awareness of the support services that are available and how to access them. They’re also important to let young people know that they can ask us anything they want to around sexual health – such as what do if they think they may have an STI, which methods of contraception may be best suited to them and where to find emergency contraception.

“We want young people to enjoy their summer but to do so safely so that they don’t end up taking risks that can last a lifetime.”

Under 25s who want to talk to someone about sexual health, puberty, relationships, how to access services, or being pressured into doing something they’re not comfortable with can also text OKAY, a confidential service.

The TEXT OKAY service can be reached by texting the word OKAY to 64446. If you text that number you don’t have to give your name, just answer Yes or No to the questions asked. You can ask any question you like, anything that is concerning you or that you want to get off your chest.

The bus poster campaign runs until 2 September and more information can be found on the Walsall integrated Sexual Health (WiSH) website www.walsallsexualhealth.co.uk