Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will provide funding for a strategic programme to support the NHS in adopting and implementing the Play Well guidelines and standards.

The Government is committed to raising the healthiest generation of children ever. This ambition is at the heart of our 10-Year Health Plan, which sets out three radical shifts: from treatment to prevention; from hospital to community; and from analogue to digital care.

The Department recognises the importance of supporting and maintaining children’s right to play in healthcare settings. The NHS England and Starlight Play Well Toolkit includes the first national guidelines and standards for commissioning and delivering health play services in England.

To support implementation, NHS England is promoting the Play Well toolkit to managers of health play services across a wide range of settings, including community clinics, emergency departments, children’s hospices, and acute paediatric wards. A range of communication channels have been used to raise awareness of the toolkit, including through professional bodies, messages from the Chief Nursing Officer, and through delivery networks directly to trusts and professional groups.

While funding decisions for health play services remain the responsibility of local commissioners, the Department supports NHS England’s work to champion the toolkit and the importance of child-centred care across healthcare settings. We remain committed to working with partners to ensure that the Play Well guidelines and standards are embedded and that all children receive appropriate care and support when they need it.