Asked by: Kim Johnson (Labour - Liverpool Riverside)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department is taking steps to increase the share of NHS expenditure directed towards children and young people.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is committed to raising the healthiest generation of children ever and ensuring that all children can access timely support that meets their health needs.
We are delivering on the vision for neighbourhood health set out in the 10-Year Health Plan to bring care closer to babies, children, and young people. Neighbourhood health services will work together with Best Start Family Hubs, schools, and colleges so that children get support quickly, including those with special educational needs and disabilities.
Integrated care boards (ICBs) are responsible for commissioning services that meet the diverse needs of their local populations, including children. All ICBs in England are required to have an Executive Lead for Children and Young People, to ensure the interests of children are reflected in decision-making.
ICB funding allocations were issued alongside the NHS Medium-Term Planning Framework, which set out targets to improve children’s experiences of the health system. The framework also states that National Health Service organisations should explicitly consider the needs of children and young people in integrated plans. The priorities set out in the framework should be reflected in ICBs’ spending plans for coming financial years. The framework can be accessed at the following link:
Asked by: Kim Johnson (Labour - Liverpool Riverside)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to ensure health services meet children and young people’s specific health needs.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is committed to raising the healthiest generation of children ever and ensuring that all children can access timely support that meets their health needs.
We are delivering on the vision for neighbourhood health set out in the 10-Year Health Plan to bring care closer to babies, children, and young people. Neighbourhood health services will work together with Best Start Family Hubs, schools, and colleges so that children get support quickly, including those with special educational needs and disabilities.
Integrated care boards (ICBs) are responsible for commissioning services that meet the diverse needs of their local populations, including children. All ICBs in England are required to have an Executive Lead for Children and Young People, to ensure the interests of children are reflected in decision-making.
ICB funding allocations were issued alongside the NHS Medium-Term Planning Framework, which set out targets to improve children’s experiences of the health system. The framework also states that National Health Service organisations should explicitly consider the needs of children and young people in integrated plans. The priorities set out in the framework should be reflected in ICBs’ spending plans for coming financial years. The framework can be accessed at the following link:
Asked by: Kim Johnson (Labour - Liverpool Riverside)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps the his Department is taking to ensure ICBs prioritise the health needs of children and young people.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is committed to raising the healthiest generation of children ever and ensuring that all children can access timely support that meets their health needs.
We are delivering on the vision for neighbourhood health set out in the 10-Year Health Plan to bring care closer to babies, children, and young people. Neighbourhood health services will work together with Best Start Family Hubs, schools, and colleges so that children get support quickly, including those with special educational needs and disabilities.
Integrated care boards (ICBs) are responsible for commissioning services that meet the diverse needs of their local populations, including children. All ICBs in England are required to have an Executive Lead for Children and Young People, to ensure the interests of children are reflected in decision-making.
ICB funding allocations were issued alongside the NHS Medium-Term Planning Framework, which set out targets to improve children’s experiences of the health system. The framework also states that National Health Service organisations should explicitly consider the needs of children and young people in integrated plans. The priorities set out in the framework should be reflected in ICBs’ spending plans for coming financial years. The framework can be accessed at the following link:
Asked by: Kim Johnson (Labour - Liverpool Riverside)
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 ensure that ICBs prioritise the health needs of children and young people.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is committed to raising the healthiest generation of children ever and ensuring that all children can access timely support that meets their health needs.
We are delivering on the vision for neighbourhood health set out in the 10-Year Health Plan to bring care closer to babies, children, and young people. Neighbourhood health services will work together with Best Start Family Hubs, schools, and colleges so that children get support quickly, including those with special educational needs and disabilities.
Integrated care boards (ICBs) are responsible for commissioning services that meet the diverse needs of their local populations, including children. All ICBs in England are required to have an Executive Lead for Children and Young People, to ensure the interests of children are reflected in decision-making.
ICB funding allocations were issued alongside the NHS Medium-Term Planning Framework, which set out targets to improve children’s experiences of the health system. The framework also states that National Health Service organisations should explicitly consider the needs of children and young people in integrated plans. The priorities set out in the framework should be reflected in ICBs’ spending plans for coming financial years. The framework can be accessed at the following link:
Asked by: Kim Johnson (Labour - Liverpool Riverside)
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 increase the share of NHS expenditure directed towards children and young people.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is committed to raising the healthiest generation of children ever and ensuring that all children can access timely support that meets their health needs.
We are delivering on the vision for neighbourhood health set out in the 10-Year Health Plan to bring care closer to babies, children, and young people. Neighbourhood health services will work together with Best Start Family Hubs, schools, and colleges so that children get support quickly, including those with special educational needs and disabilities.
Integrated care boards (ICBs) are responsible for commissioning services that meet the diverse needs of their local populations, including children. All ICBs in England are required to have an Executive Lead for Children and Young People, to ensure the interests of children are reflected in decision-making.
ICB funding allocations were issued alongside the NHS Medium-Term Planning Framework, which set out targets to improve children’s experiences of the health system. The framework also states that National Health Service organisations should explicitly consider the needs of children and young people in integrated plans. The priorities set out in the framework should be reflected in ICBs’ spending plans for coming financial years. The framework can be accessed at the following link:
Asked by: Kim Johnson (Labour - Liverpool Riverside)
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 ensure that the health service meets children and young people’s distinct health needs.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is committed to raising the healthiest generation of children ever and ensuring that all children can access timely support that meets their health needs.
We are delivering on the vision for neighbourhood health set out in the 10-Year Health Plan to bring care closer to babies, children, and young people. Neighbourhood health services will work together with Best Start Family Hubs, schools, and colleges so that children get support quickly, including those with special educational needs and disabilities.
Integrated care boards (ICBs) are responsible for commissioning services that meet the diverse needs of their local populations, including children. All ICBs in England are required to have an Executive Lead for Children and Young People, to ensure the interests of children are reflected in decision-making.
ICB funding allocations were issued alongside the NHS Medium-Term Planning Framework, which set out targets to improve children’s experiences of the health system. The framework also states that National Health Service organisations should explicitly consider the needs of children and young people in integrated plans. The priorities set out in the framework should be reflected in ICBs’ spending plans for coming financial years. The framework can be accessed at the following link:
Asked by: Joe Robertson (Conservative - Isle of Wight East)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how the decision to prioritise continuation funding for the existing 75 Start for Life local authority areas aligns with the commitment in the 10-Year Health Plan for England to expand Start for Life services across all communities.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The 10-Year Health Plan sets out an ambitious agenda to how we will improve the nation’s health by creating a new model of care that is fit for the future.
We recognise that local authorities are ambitious, seeking to deliver universal support to families and prevent escalating need. We are committed to delivering the 10-Year Health Plan ambition to match Healthy Babies, formerly Start for Life, to Best Start Family Hubs over the next decade.
Asked by: Joe Robertson (Conservative - Isle of Wight East)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether the Government intends to provide Start for Life funding to new local authority areas.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The 10-Year Health Plan sets out an ambitious agenda to how we will improve the nation’s health by creating a new model of care that is fit for the future.
We recognise that local authorities are ambitious, seeking to deliver universal support to families and prevent escalating need. We are committed to delivering the 10-Year Health Plan ambition to match Healthy Babies, formerly Start for Life, to Best Start Family Hubs over the next decade.
Asked by: Helen Morgan (Liberal Democrat - North Shropshire)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the impact of not extending Start for Life funding to new Best Start for Life Family Hub areas on the delivery of integrated early-years services by local authorities.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Delivering integrated, joined-up health, education, and family support is at the heart of our ambition to raise the healthiest generation of children ever.
Healthy Babies, formerly Start for Life, funding is helping families during the critical 1,001 days, and parents have said that they are more confident in feeding their babies and have better perinatal mental health because of this support. Further information is available at the following link:
We continue to assess how we can best support early years service integration across the country and remain committed to working with delivery partners locally to achieve this.
Healthy Babies is one element of our broader commitment to supporting babies, children, and families. From April 2026, Best Start Family Hubs will expand to every single local authority, backed by over £500 million, to reach up to half a million more children and families. This funding will help all local authorities to integrate a range of statutory and non-statutory child health and family services.
Best Start Family Hubs will form part of the architecture of the Neighbourhood Health Service. Through the shifts from hospital to community and from treatment to prevention, we will further strengthen the integration of services, helping to ensure that babies and their families can get the support they need, when and where they need it.
Asked by: Stuart Andrew (Conservative - Daventry)
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 potential impact on child development outcomes of not matching Start for Life funding with the expansion of Best Start Family Hubs.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
We are committed to delivering the 10-Year Health Plan ambition to match Healthy Babies, formerly Start for Life, to Best Start Family Hubs over the next decade.
There is strong evidence that the 1,001 days from pregnancy to the age of two years old set the foundations for our cognitive, emotional, and physical development. Supporting babies and their families in this period provides an opportunity to improve health and education outcomes and reduce inequalities, including on Early Years Foundation Stage domains.
We have already started to deliver the shift from treatment to prevention by providing funding to 75 areas to deliver universal, prevention-focussed Healthy Babies services. From April, the Government is rolling out Best Start Family Hubs to all local authorities, backed by over £500 million to reach up to half a million more children and families. This funding will help embed hubs within a wider support system, including integrated child health services, and will enable proactive identification and support for health issues and early developmental delays.