Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to tackle the backlog in the Healthy Start scheme to ensure newly eligible families subject to no recourse to public funds can access support.
The Department has recently agreed to temporarily extend the Healthy Start scheme to British children aged under four years old whose parent/guardian meet the financial eligibility criteria and are excluded from claiming public funds as a consequence of their immigration status.
Those who believe they qualify for the temporary extension must submit a completed application form with supporting documents that demonstrate they meet all the eligibility criteria.
There is no backlog in the Healthy Start scheme. The Department is supporting all individuals and third-party organisations making enquiries regarding this temporary extension by providing a bespoke application form and application guidance document.