Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of uto-enroling eligible families to the Healthy Start scheme.

The Healthy Start scheme was introduced in 2006 to encourage a healthy diet for pregnant women, babies and young children under four from very low-income households. It can be used to buy, or put towards the cost of, fruit, vegetables, pulses, milk and infant formula. Those on the scheme have access to free Healthy Start Vitamins for pregnant women and children aged under four years old.

The NHS Business Services Authority (NHS BSA) operates the Healthy Start scheme on behalf of the Department. All applicants to the Healthy Start scheme, where they meet the eligibility criteria, must accept the terms and conditions of the prepaid card at the point of application. As the prepaid card is a financial product and cannot be issued without the applicant accepting these terms, NHS BSA is not able to automatically provide eligible families with a prepaid card. However, the scheme is kept under review, and we remain open to all viable routes to improve uptake to ensure that as many eligible people as possible are accessing the scheme, to support their children with a healthy start in life.

In January 2025, Healthy Start supported over 353,000 people.