A £5.9 million drive to help cut pregnancies among disadvantaged teenagers failed when numbers actually increased, research out today suggests.

The Young People's Development Programme (YPDP) ran in 27 parts of England between 2004 and 2007, based on a similar model in New York. It was designed to offer education and support to young people aged 13 to 15 who were deemed at risk of exclusion from school, drug abuse and teenage pregnancy.

A total of 2,371 teenagers took part in the programme to some extent over the three years — costing £2,500 each.

But research out today shows that young women who attended the programme were “significantly” more likely to fall pregnant than those in a comparison group.

A total of 16% of the YPDP group fell pregnant compared with 6% in the other group, which was a youth programme not receiving YPDP funds.