Asked by: Nadia Whittome (Labour - Nottingham 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 the potential merits of increasing funding to increase capacity in children and young people's gender services.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
This year NHS England has more than doubled the level of financial investment into children and young people’s gender services compared to last year, and will make significant further investment this year and in subsequent years, as up to eight regional providers are established in line with the recommendations of the Cass Review.
NHS England has made significant progress on its overhaul of children’s gender identity services. NHS England closed the Tavistock Gender Clinic last month and opened two new, regional services operating under a fundamentally differing service model earlier this month. A third clinic is set to open in Bristol this autumn, and NHS England has committed to a further three services by 2026. These new services will increase service capacity and reduce waiting lists.
Asked by: Nadia Whittome (Labour - Nottingham East)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if he will implement a visa scheme to enable Palestinian children to receive critical medical treatment in the UK.
Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)
The UK is exploring how best to support the medical needs of those in Gaza, including what options can be provided in the region.
It is ultimately at the discretion of the Israeli and Egyptian authorities who can cross the border.
The Home Office is not currently considering establishing a bespoke visa scheme for Palestinian children to receive critical medical treatment in the UK. There are provisions that allow a person to come to the UK for private medical treatment under Appendix V of the Immigration Rules. If the rules are not met, careful consideration will be given on whether a grant of leave outside of the rules would be appropriate.
Should applications be submitted from Palestinian children, who have secured permission from the Israeli and Egyptian authorities to exit Gaza, requiring specialist medical treatment they will be treated with the utmost seriousness. If that leads to the identification of specific cases in which a person would be better off making the long journey to the UK to undertake treatment, we will not rule out bringing them to British hospitals, as we have done in the past.
Asked by: Nadia Whittome (Labour - Nottingham East)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what support her Department is providing to families of children with poor mental health.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
The Every Mind Matters website and the National Health Service website both contain helpful advice for parents and carers of a child or young person with poor mental health. This includes signposting to a number of voluntary organisations offering support and information.
Family members of children with poor mental health, who feel they themselves need psychological support, should speak to their general practitioner, or can self-refer to NHS Talking Therapies online. Details are available on the NHS website.
In addition, NHS England is developing a new waiting time measure for children and their families and carers to start receiving community-based mental health care within four weeks of referral. NHS England began publishing this new data in 2023, to improve transparency and drive local accountability.
Asked by: Nadia Whittome (Labour - Nottingham East)
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 protect children from unhealthy food and drink marketing.
Answered by Andrea Leadsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is committed to working with businesses to ensure that we create the conditions for a healthier nation, and we are implementing an ambitious programme of measures to tackle childhood obesity. On 1 October 2022, the Government introduced legislation to restrict the location of foods high in fat, salt, or sugar in shops and online.
On 1 October 2025, the volume price promotion restrictions will come into force, restricting volume price promotions such as three for two offers on less healthy products. The Government will simultaneously introduce a United Kingdom-wide 9:00pm television watershed for products high in fat, salt, or sugar, and a restriction of paid-for advertising of these products online, also on 1 October 2025. We continue to work with industry on the Food Data Transparency Partnership, to co-develop voluntary reporting requirements for food business to demonstrate the healthiness of their sales.
The Government, through its focus on prevention, is committed to improving the oral health of our young children through the Smile for Life programme, so that they have good habits by the time they start primary school.
Asked by: Nadia Whittome (Labour - Nottingham 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 the potential impact of transitioning from CAMHS to adult mental health services on the support provided to young people.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
Under the NHS Long Term Plan, local health systems have been tasked with delivering a comprehensive offer for zero to 25 year-olds to ensure young adults receive appropriate mental health support, regardless of their age or diagnostic profile.
Between the ages of 16 to 18 years old, young people are more susceptible to mental illness, undergoing physiological change and making important transitions in their lives. The structure of the National Health Service’s mental health services often creates gaps for young people undergoing the transition from children and young people’s mental health services to appropriate support, including adult mental health services. The new approach to young adult mental health services for people aged 18 to 25 years old will better support the transition to adulthood.
Asked by: Nadia Whittome (Labour - Nottingham East)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what support her Department is providing to children experiencing addiction issues.
Answered by Andrea Leadsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Alcohol or drug dependence is rare in children and young people under the age of 18 years old, although they may be drinking problematically. Children may also experience second-hand harms of parental alcohol or drug dependence. The most effective and sustainable approach to reducing alcohol and drug harms in children is by giving them the best start in life, the best education possible, and keeping them safe, well, and happy.
Statutory guidance on relationships, sex, and health education requires all primary and secondary school pupils to be taught the key facts and risks of alcohol and drug use, as well as how to manage influences and pressure, and keep themselves healthy and safe. The Department has worked with the PSHE Association to develop the lesson plans on alcohol and is currently commissioning an update of the resources to be published later this year. Current resources are available at the following link:
https://pshe-association.org.uk/drugeducation
Through the cross-Government Drug Strategy, the Department has allocated £532 million of additional funding through to 2024/25, to support improvements in alcohol and drug treatment, including facilitating 5,000 more young people into age-appropriate treatment by 2024/25. Local authorities can also invest their allocation in options from a menu of interventions, some of which include strengthening the services available to children and families.
The Government also has an information and advice service called Talk to FRANK, which aims to reduce alcohol and drug use and its harms, by providing awareness to young people, parents, and concerned others. Further information is available at the following link:
Asked by: Nadia Whittome (Labour - Nottingham East)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will lower the threshold for free school meals qualification.
Answered by Damian Hinds - Minister of State (Education)
The department has extended free school meal (FSM) support several times and to more groups of children than any other government over the past half a century. As a result, the greatest ever proportion of children are now receiving free lunches. Over one third of children are now eligible for FSM, compared to one in six in 2010.
However, a threshold must be set somewhere. The department believes that the current eligibility threshold level, which enables children in low-income households to benefit from FSM, while remaining affordable and deliverable for schools, is the correct decision.
The department will continue to keep FSM eligibility under review to ensure that these meals are supporting those who most need them.