Children’s health ‘under threat due to disjointed health policies’

Children's health is being put at risk due to the British government's disjointed approach to public policy, according to a new report.

The Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health has published its latest State of Child Health report, which details the progress that England, Scotland and Wales have made against the recommendations made by the college a year ago.

Although England has taken some important steps – including the launch of a digital child health strategy, the publication of a new tobacco control plan and the implementation of the sugar tax – it continues to lag behind on several key measures.

For example, an overarching child health strategy remains distant, while recommendations for a junk food advertising ban and increased investment in child health research have not been followed. There is also still no established way of measuring UK breastfeeding rates.

By contrast, Scotland has passed laws with defined child poverty reduction targets and a new mental health strategy, while Wales has moved to extend bans on smoking in public places to school grounds, playgrounds and NHS grounds, as well as expanding capacity for child health research with a new facility in Cardiff.

Professor Neena Modi, president of the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health, said: "We need parity of esteem between acute and preventive healthcare. It is no good only throwing money at treating established problems; there must be far better investment in prevention, which will reap immeasurable long-term benefits."

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