The Let's Talk About Sex project, funded by a £1,500 grant from Newcastle City Council, is designed to give parents greater confidence when raising the subject with their children.

The six-week course will be held in the Byker area of the city, which has high teenage pregnancy rates.

It is hoped that by giving mothers and fathers advice on how to talk to their children about sex, the project will help reduce the number of schoolgirl mothers.

Sessions will be held at the Byker Sands Family Centre and the nearby Benfield School.

Sian Bufton, project manager at the family centre, said: "This is a much-needed piece of work.

"Many parents struggle to address these vital subjects and this course aims not only to dispel some myths and arm parents with all they need to know, but also help them in the language they use and the way to go about broaching the subject.

"Obviously it is preferable that children learn about sex and emotional issues from their parents rather than in the playground and this course aims to break down a few barriers and enable that to happen.

"Although reducing the number of teenage mothers is one of our aims, opening up channels of communication between parents and their children can reduce all sorts of potential risks that might otherwise not be talked about."

Embarrassment

Paula Doran from the Family Planning Association said: "We are delighted to hear about this type of approach and we would like to see more of it.

A recent survey showed that 11% of female students had been pregnant

"It is important to recognise that a lot of parents are embarrassed and find it incredibly difficult to talk about sex with their kids.

"Research has shown that if children are educated at an early age about sex they are more likely to have sex later and use contraception."

Previous research by the National Children's Bureau's Sex Education Forum has shown that some schools do an excellent job of teaching children about sex, but that others regard sex education as an area where schools should be supporting parents and leave them to cover the issues of relationships and feelings.

The Forum said a partnership between teachers and parents was the best way to teach children about sex.

A recent survey of students, which found that 11% of female students had been pregnant, showed that a third of students had had sex before they were 15.

The students questioned called for better and earlier advice on earlier matters, particularly on contraception.

Crackdown on teen fathers

The UK has the highest number of teenage pregnancies in Western Europe and the highest number of unmarried teenage mothers in the world.

The UK annual total for teenage pregnancies now stands at about 93,000, according to the British Medical Association.

The government's social exclusion unit proposes "a radical set of changes to the systems for preventing teenage pregnancy and supporting teenage parents".