THE number of youngsters on the Child Protection Register in Stoke-on-Trent has fallen by 31 to 210 in the past year.

The figures were included in the city's young people's annual plan, which also showed a drop in those in care from 416 to 389, but an increase of 13 in the number of foster carer households approved in the past 12 months.

The report, issued by the University Hospital of North Staffordshire, revealed 27 per cent of mothers were breast-feeding their babies between six and eight weeks after giving birth, and 95 per cent of women were seen by a health professional within 12 weeks of becoming pregnant.

Despite marketing campaigns during the past year, almost a quarter of women continued to smoke while pregnant.