New Children's Wellbeing and Schools Bill to introduce registers for children not in school
The Children's Wellbeing and Schools Bill is to introduce new registers to identify children who are not in school as well as paving the way for a unique identifier number for children across services, similar to the national insurance number in adults.
The Bill, which was being tabled in Parliament as this issue of the journal was going to press, was described by the Department for Education as central to its Plan for Change, which aims to ‘put children's futures at the centre of rebuilding public services, and break down barriers to opportunity’.
As part of the Bill, parents will no longer have an automatic right to educate their children at home if their child is subject to a child protection investigation or under a child protection plan.
Further, if a child's home environment is assessed as unsuitable or unsafe, local authorities will be given the power to intervene and require school attendance for any child. The DfE said that measures in the Bill will make sure that teachers and schools are always involved in decisions around safeguarding children in their area.
Education Secretary, Bridget Phillipson, said the Bill would lead to ‘better protections for young people and real join-up between children's social care, schools and local services’. Commenting on the Bill, Paul Whiteman, General Secretary at the National Association of Head Teachers, said: ‘We have long called for a register of pupils who are not in school and it is very positive to see that this important safeguarding measure is finally being taken after years of delay.’ Pepe Di'Iasio, General Secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, added: ‘All of this makes good sense, and frankly, cannot come soon enough.’ Visit www.gov.uk/government/news/legislation-breaks-down-barriers-to-opportunity-for-all-children
Ban on puberty blockers has been made indefinite in legislation update
Following official advice, the government has made existing emergency measures banning the sale and supply of puberty-suppressing hormones indefinite.
The Commission on Human Medicines provided independent advice, ruling that there is currently an unacceptable safety risk in the continued prescription of puberty blockers to children and recommended indefinite restrictions while work is done to ensure the safety of children and young people.
In March 2024, the routine prescription of puberty blocker treatments to under-18s had been stopped in the NHS following the Cass Review into gender identity services. The review found that there was insufficient evidence to show they were safe.
Legislation will come into force on the 1st of January 2025, when the current emergency order expires, and the ban will be reviewed in 2027.
Health and Social Care Secretary, Wes Streeting, said: ‘Children's healthcare must always be evidence-led. The independent expert Commission on Human Medicines found that the current prescribing and care pathway for gender dysphoria and incongruence presents an unacceptable safety risk for children and young people.
‘Dr Cass's review also raised safety concerns around the lack of evidence for these medical treatments. We need to act with caution and care when it comes to this vulnerable group of young people, and follow the expert advice.
‘We are working with NHS England to open new gender identity services, so people can access holistic health and wellbeing support they need. We are setting up a clinical trial into the use of puberty blockers next year, to establish a clear evidence base.’
Study finds widening inequalities in child vaccination rates in England
Inequalities in childhood vaccination are widening in England, with uptake rates of five key vaccines consistently lower in young children living in areas of higher deprivation from 2019 to 2023, finds a study published by The BMJ.
The researchers say vaccine uptake was below the World Health Organization's recommended 95% target for all vaccinations studied and call for urgent action to strengthen systems for childhood vaccination.
Records show that uptake rates of childhood vaccinations in England have been steadily declining over the past decade but few studies have looked at trends in inequalities.
To address this, researchers set out to assess the effect of socioeconomic deprivation on the uptake of five key vaccinations included in the childhood immunisation schedule in England from 2019 to 2013. Their findings are based on general practice data for five key vaccines given to children aged up to 5 years in England between April 2019 and March 2023.
The vaccines were first and second doses of the measles, mumps, and rubella vaccine (MMR1 and MMR2), rotavirus vaccine, pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV) booster, and six-in-one (DTaP/IPV/Hib/HepB) vaccine covering diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis (whooping cough), polio, Haemophilus influenzae type b, and hepatitis B).
The results show that for all vaccinations, the absolute difference in uptake between the least and most deprived groups increased over the study period.
For the six-in-one vaccine, the absolute difference in vaccination uptake between the least and most deprived groups in the starting quarter was 3.3% and increased to 7.4% (4.1 percentage points) by the final quarter of data collection.
The most pronounced inequality was seen for the MMR2 vaccine given at age 3 years and 4 months, increasing from −9.6% to −13.4%.
Regional analysis showed that London had the lowest overall uptake of vaccination, followed by the Midlands and North West. London and the North West region also had greater inequality in vaccine uptake compared with southern regions.
The study results in full can be read at: https://www.bmj.com/content/387/bmj-2024-079550.long.
Awareness of women's personal breastfeeding experiences ‘crucial to delivering optimal care’
A study published in the Journal of Obstetric, Gynecologic & Neonatal Nursing has explored what is known about women's breastfeeding experiences in facilities that implement policies supported by the Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative. By mapping results to the Interactive Theory of Breastfeeding, the authors show how interrelated factors influence these experiences in addition to the Baby-Friendly policies implemented within facilities. The results indicate that being aware of women's breastfeeding experiences is crucial to delivering optimal breastfeeding care, and policies and practices should be developed in alignment with patient experiences to enhance future inpatient breastfeeding support.
News in brief
An investigation published by The BMJ reveals widespread influence of food and drink brands in schools and nurseries – through breakfast clubs, nutrition guidance and healthy eating campaigns. Experts say the tactics are ‘subtle but very problematic’ and require much greater scrutiny and pushback. Kellogg's has donated £5.7 million to UK schools through a partnership with the Magic Breakfast charity, while the Greggs Foundation – a charitable arm part funded by the high street bakery chain – says it now has 898 breakfast clubs supporting more than 62 000 children a day, with a target to reach 1000 clubs. Lindsey MacDonald, CEO of Magic Breakfast, said that food supplied as part of their breakfast provision ‘meets government school food standards’.
New study findings indicate that co-occurring mental health problems are common in parents when their child is referred to CAMHS, and in these families, children have more symptoms, and more families experience problematic functioning. These factors merit consideration in assessment and treatment planning, indicating increased treatment needs. The authors state that a larger representative sample is needed to report the prevalence rates of parental mental health problems in CAMHS. The full study results can be found at: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00787-024-02607-3#Sec20.