Apr. 29 2009
Source Page: Obesity: guidance on the prevention, identification, assessment and management of overweight and obesity in adults and children. 84 p.Found: Obesity: guidance on the prevention, identification, assessment and management of overweight and obesity
Asked by: Barry Sheerman (Labour (Co-op) - Huddersfield)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if she will take steps with Cabinet colleagues to help tackle the potential impact of outdoor advertising on children’s (a) diet and (b) obesity levels.
Answered by Andrea Leadsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is committed to tackling childhood obesity. We are implementing landmark advertising restrictions from October 2025, which will protect children from the advertising of less healthy food and drink on television before the 9:00pm watershed, and paid-for advertising online. Evidence shows that these restrictions will have a direct impact on childhood obesity by targeting the media that children experience most.
Asked by: Colleen Fletcher (Labour - Coventry North East)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment she has made of trends in childhood obesity levels in (a) Coventry North East constituency, (b) Coventry, (c) the West Midlands and (d) England in each of the last three years.
Answered by Andrea Leadsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The National Child Measurement Programme (NCMP) collects data on children aged four to five years old, who would be in reception, and 10 to 11 years old, who would be in year 6. It provides detailed trend data on children’s weight status, including childhood obesity. While data is not available at a constituency level, it is available at a local authority, regional, and national level. The following table shows the obesity prevalence from the NCMP in Coventry, the West Midlands, and England, for 2019/20, 2020/21, 2021/22 and 2022/23:
Area | Children aged four to five years old | Children aged 10 to 11 years old | ||||||
2019/20 | 2020/21 | 2021/22 | 2022/23 | 2019/20 | 2020/21 | 2021/22 | 2022/23 | |
Coventry | 11.7% | 15.2% | 10.4% | 9.8% | 25.3% | 30.2% | 26.7% | 25.6% |
West Midlands | 11.2% | 16% | 11.3% | 10.1% | 23.9% | 28.4% | 26.2% | 25.2% |
England | 9.9% | 14.4% | 10.1% | 9.2% | 21% | 25.5% | 23.4% | 22.7% |
Note: the data for 2019/20 was collected before the COVID-19 pandemic.
The data shows that the prevalence of obesity in children aged four to five years old has decreased since the increase seen in 2020/21, during the COVID-19 pandemic. For children aged 10 to 11 years old, prevalence has decreased, but it still remains higher in 2022/23 compared to pre-pandemic levels in 2019/20, for the West Midlands and England. For Coventry, however, prevalence in 2022/23 is similar to pre-pandemic levels in 2019/20.
Asked by: Mary Glindon (Labour - North Tyneside)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps her Department is taking to tackle childhood obesity; and if she will take steps to work with (a) other Departments and (b) community organisations to provide access to safe recreational spaces for children.
Answered by Andrea Leadsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Addressing obesity remains a priority for the Government and we are taking strong action to support people, including children and their families, in achieving and maintaining a healthier weight. This action includes: the introduction of restrictions on the promotion by location of less healthy products in key selling locations in store and online; working with the food industry to make further progress on reformulation and making healthier choices easier; the introduction of out of home calorie labelling regulations for food sold in large businesses, including restaurants, cafes, and takeaways; and supporting three million children through the Healthy Food Schemes.
The Government has taken steps towards providing access to open spaces for communities including children, this includes putting policies in place to require local authorities to provide access to open spaces for sport and physical activity, which is important for the health and well-being of communities. This includes a duty for all local councils to produce a design code for their local area. Design codes will be prepared locally, reflect the local context, and be based on effective community involvement. Officials in the Department are engaging with stakeholders, including those across Government, on a wide range of issues, to promote healthier places.
Asked by: Baroness Goudie (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have, if any, to undertake a review into levels of childhood obesity and the role that the promotion of meals, snacks and drinks in early years settings can play in combatting this trend.
Answered by Lord Markham - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Early Years Foundation Stage Statutory Framework (EYFS) sets the standards that all early years providers must meet, for the learning, development, and care of children from birth to five years old. The EYFS requires that where children are provided with meals, snacks, and drinks, they must be healthy, balanced, and nutritious. The EYFS also refers to example menus and guidance, which support parents, carers, and anyone working with children, to provide healthy food options. The Department for Education has also very recently published a range of tools and advice to support childminders, nursery leaders, and pre-school practitioners to improve the food offered in early years settings on the Help for early years providers platform.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps she is taking to help support parents of children up to the age of five to tackle childhood obesity.
Answered by Andrea Leadsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
We are taking strong action to support children and their families in achieving and maintaining a healthier weight. The Government is investing approximately £300 million to improve support for families though the joint Department of Health and Social Care and Department for Education Family Hubs and Start for Life Programme. The programme will implement many elements of the Best Start for Life Vision and is delivering a step change in outcomes for babies, children, and their parents and carers in 75 local authorities in England, including those with high levels of deprivation.
The funding package includes £50 million to invest in infant feeding services, which will enable participating local authorities to design and deliver a blended offer of advice and support, in line with local needs.
We support more than three million children through the Healthy Foods Scheme. We also support parents with primary aged children in England to eat well, and move more, through Better Health Families. This includes healthy eating advice and easy recipes, a Food Scanner app to help families to swap less healthy foods and drinks to healthier alternatives, and the Healthy Steps email-programme to inspire and support parents to take easy steps to improve their families' health and wellbeing.
We work with the Department for Education to ensure that children are provided healthy food options in early years settings, and in school. For children aged zero to five years old, the Early Years Foundation Stage framework states that where children are provided with meals, snacks, and drinks, they must be healthy, balanced, and nutritious. The Eat Better, Start Better guidelines and example menus support parents, carers, and anyone working with children to provide healthy food options.
The School Food Standards are set in legislation and require that school caterers serve healthy and nutritious food and drinks, to ensure children get the energy and nutrition they need throughout the school day. Foods high in fat, salt, and sugar are restricted. We are also helping schools boost physical activity to help children maintain a healthy weight and good overall health through the Primary School PE and Sport Premium and the School Games Organiser Network.
In addition, primary school children are educated about healthy eating through the relationships, sex, and health education curriculum. By the end of primary school, pupils should know what constitutes a healthy diet, the principles of planning and preparing a range of healthy meals, the characteristics of a poor diet, and risks associated with unhealthy eating. We have programmes to identify children living with excess weight, and local authorities and the National Health Service in England provide weight management services.
The National Child Measurement Programme monitors the weight status of children at the start and end of primary school. The programme provides is a useful prompt to parents and schools to support healthy eating and physical activity. Data is used to help local authorities plan healthy weight, food and activity support and services for children and their families.
Local authorities can fund weight management services to support children and families, to achieve a healthier weight from their Public Health Grant. The NHS has commissioned a number of Complications from Excess Weight clinics across England for children and young people living with complications related to severe obesity. We are also delivering an ambitious programme of work to create a healthier environment to help people achieve and maintain a healthier weight.
Regulations on out of home calorie labelling for food sold in large businesses, including restaurants, cafes, and takeaways, came into force in April 2022. Restrictions on the placement of products high in fat, sugar, or salt in key selling locations, came into force on 1 October 2022. We will be implementing restrictions on the sale of less healthy products by volume price, for instance three for two offers, and will introduce restrictions on the advertising of less healthy products before 9:00pm on television. We will also be implementing restrictions on paid for online advertising for less healthy products, from 1 October 2025.
We are working with the food industry to ensure it is easier for the public to make healthier choices and make further progress on reformulation. In addition, the Food Data Transparency Partnership will help enable and encourage food companies to voluntarily demonstrate progress on the healthiness of their sales.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps she taking to help support parents to tackle obesity in their children.
Answered by Andrea Leadsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
We are taking strong action to support children and their families in achieving and maintaining a healthier weight. The Government is investing approximately £300 million to improve support for families though the joint Department of Health and Social Care and Department for Education Family Hubs and Start for Life Programme. The programme will implement many elements of the Best Start for Life Vision and is delivering a step change in outcomes for babies, children, and their parents and carers in 75 local authorities in England, including those with high levels of deprivation.
The funding package includes £50 million to invest in infant feeding services, which will enable participating local authorities to design and deliver a blended offer of advice and support, in line with local needs.
We support more than three million children through the Healthy Foods Scheme. We also support parents with primary aged children in England to eat well, and move more, through Better Health Families. This includes healthy eating advice and easy recipes, a Food Scanner app to help families to swap less healthy foods and drinks to healthier alternatives, and the Healthy Steps email-programme to inspire and support parents to take easy steps to improve their families' health and wellbeing.
We work with the Department for Education to ensure that children are provided healthy food options in early years settings, and in school. For children aged zero to five years old, the Early Years Foundation Stage framework states that where children are provided with meals, snacks, and drinks, they must be healthy, balanced, and nutritious. The Eat Better, Start Better guidelines and example menus support parents, carers, and anyone working with children to provide healthy food options.
The School Food Standards are set in legislation and require that school caterers serve healthy and nutritious food and drinks, to ensure children get the energy and nutrition they need throughout the school day. Foods high in fat, salt, and sugar are restricted. We are also helping schools boost physical activity to help children maintain a healthy weight and good overall health through the Primary School PE and Sport Premium and the School Games Organiser Network.
In addition, primary school children are educated about healthy eating through the relationships, sex, and health education curriculum. By the end of primary school, pupils should know what constitutes a healthy diet, the principles of planning and preparing a range of healthy meals, the characteristics of a poor diet, and risks associated with unhealthy eating. We have programmes to identify children living with excess weight, and local authorities and the National Health Service in England provide weight management services.
The National Child Measurement Programme monitors the weight status of children at the start and end of primary school. The programme provides is a useful prompt to parents and schools to support healthy eating and physical activity. Data is used to help local authorities plan healthy weight, food and activity support and services for children and their families.
Local authorities can fund weight management services to support children and families, to achieve a healthier weight from their Public Health Grant. The NHS has commissioned a number of Complications from Excess Weight clinics across England for children and young people living with complications related to severe obesity. We are also delivering an ambitious programme of work to create a healthier environment to help people achieve and maintain a healthier weight.
Regulations on out of home calorie labelling for food sold in large businesses, including restaurants, cafes, and takeaways, came into force in April 2022. Restrictions on the placement of products high in fat, sugar, or salt in key selling locations, came into force on 1 October 2022. We will be implementing restrictions on the sale of less healthy products by volume price, for instance three for two offers, and will introduce restrictions on the advertising of less healthy products before 9:00pm on television. We will also be implementing restrictions on paid for online advertising for less healthy products, from 1 October 2025.
We are working with the food industry to ensure it is easier for the public to make healthier choices and make further progress on reformulation. In addition, the Food Data Transparency Partnership will help enable and encourage food companies to voluntarily demonstrate progress on the healthiness of their sales.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps her Department is taking to help tackle obesity in primary school children.
Answered by Andrea Leadsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
We are taking strong action to support children and their families in achieving and maintaining a healthier weight. The Government is investing approximately £300 million to improve support for families though the joint Department of Health and Social Care and Department for Education Family Hubs and Start for Life Programme. The programme will implement many elements of the Best Start for Life Vision and is delivering a step change in outcomes for babies, children, and their parents and carers in 75 local authorities in England, including those with high levels of deprivation.
The funding package includes £50 million to invest in infant feeding services, which will enable participating local authorities to design and deliver a blended offer of advice and support, in line with local needs.
We support more than three million children through the Healthy Foods Scheme. We also support parents with primary aged children in England to eat well, and move more, through Better Health Families. This includes healthy eating advice and easy recipes, a Food Scanner app to help families to swap less healthy foods and drinks to healthier alternatives, and the Healthy Steps email-programme to inspire and support parents to take easy steps to improve their families' health and wellbeing.
We work with the Department for Education to ensure that children are provided healthy food options in early years settings, and in school. For children aged zero to five years old, the Early Years Foundation Stage framework states that where children are provided with meals, snacks, and drinks, they must be healthy, balanced, and nutritious. The Eat Better, Start Better guidelines and example menus support parents, carers, and anyone working with children to provide healthy food options.
The School Food Standards are set in legislation and require that school caterers serve healthy and nutritious food and drinks, to ensure children get the energy and nutrition they need throughout the school day. Foods high in fat, salt, and sugar are restricted. We are also helping schools boost physical activity to help children maintain a healthy weight and good overall health through the Primary School PE and Sport Premium and the School Games Organiser Network.
In addition, primary school children are educated about healthy eating through the relationships, sex, and health education curriculum. By the end of primary school, pupils should know what constitutes a healthy diet, the principles of planning and preparing a range of healthy meals, the characteristics of a poor diet, and risks associated with unhealthy eating. We have programmes to identify children living with excess weight, and local authorities and the National Health Service in England provide weight management services.
The National Child Measurement Programme monitors the weight status of children at the start and end of primary school. The programme provides is a useful prompt to parents and schools to support healthy eating and physical activity. Data is used to help local authorities plan healthy weight, food and activity support and services for children and their families.
Local authorities can fund weight management services to support children and families, to achieve a healthier weight from their Public Health Grant. The NHS has commissioned a number of Complications from Excess Weight clinics across England for children and young people living with complications related to severe obesity. We are also delivering an ambitious programme of work to create a healthier environment to help people achieve and maintain a healthier weight.
Regulations on out of home calorie labelling for food sold in large businesses, including restaurants, cafes, and takeaways, came into force in April 2022. Restrictions on the placement of products high in fat, sugar, or salt in key selling locations, came into force on 1 October 2022. We will be implementing restrictions on the sale of less healthy products by volume price, for instance three for two offers, and will introduce restrictions on the advertising of less healthy products before 9:00pm on television. We will also be implementing restrictions on paid for online advertising for less healthy products, from 1 October 2025.
We are working with the food industry to ensure it is easier for the public to make healthier choices and make further progress on reformulation. In addition, the Food Data Transparency Partnership will help enable and encourage food companies to voluntarily demonstrate progress on the healthiness of their sales.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps she is taking to help tackle childhood obesity.
Answered by Andrea Leadsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
We are delivering an ambitious programme of work to create a healthier environment, to help people achieve and maintain a healthy weight. Regulations on out of home calorie labelling for food sold in large businesses, including restaurants, cafes, and takeaways, came into force in April 2022. Restrictions on the placement of products high in fat, sugar, or salt in key selling locations came into force on 1 October 2022. We will be implementing restrictions on the sale of less healthy products by volume price, for instance three for two offers, and will introduce restrictions on the advertising of less healthy products before 9:00pm on television. We will also be implementing restrictions on paid for online advertising for less healthy products, from 1 October 2025.
We are working with the food industry to ensure it is easier for the public to make healthier choices, and make further progress on reformulation. In addition, the Food Data Transparency Partnership will help enable and encourage food companies to voluntarily demonstrate progress on the healthiness of their sales.
We are also supporting more than three million children through the Healthy Foods Schemes, and helping schools boost physical activity to help children maintain a healthy weight and good overall health through the Primary School PE and Sport Premium and the School Games Organiser Network. In addition, local authorities and the National Health Service provide weight management services and the NHS Health Check Programme, to support their communities in achieving and maintaining a healthier weight.
Asked by: Feryal Clark (Labour - Enfield North)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of childhood obesity levels in (a) Enfield North constituency, (b) the London Borough of Enfield and (c) London; and what steps his Department is taking to tackle childhood obesity in each of those areas.
Answered by Andrea Leadsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The National Child Measurement Programme (NCMP) collects data on children aged four to five years old (Reception) and 10 to 11 years old (Year 6). The following table shows data from the NCMP on the percentage of children living with obesity in Reception and Year 6 in the academic year 2022-23. Data is not available at Parliamentary constituency level but is available at local authority and regional levels:
Area | Reception (%) | Year 6 (%) |
Enfield | 10.8 | 28.0 |
London | 9.3 | 24.8 |
Local authorities and the National Health Service provide weight management services to support children and families to achieve and maintain a healthier weight. Local authorities can fund behavioural weight management services from their Public Health Grant.
In England, new regulations on out-of-home calorie labelling for food sold in large businesses, including restaurants, cafes, and takeaways, came into force in April 2022. Restrictions on the placement of less healthy products in key selling locations in store and online came into force in October 2022. The location restrictions are the single most impactful obesity policy in reducing children’s calorie consumption and are expected to accrue health benefits of over £57 billion and provide savings to the NHS of over £4 billion over the next 25 years.
We are also working with the food industry to make further progress on reformulation and ensure it is easier for the public to make healthier choices. We have seen important successes including the average sugar content of drinks subject to the Soft Drinks Industry Levy decreasing by 46% between 2015 and 2020. There has also been success in some categories of the sugar reduction programme, including a 14.9% reduction of sugar in retailer- and manufacturer-branded breakfast cereals and a 13.5% reduction in yogurts and fromage frais.