Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the findings of the Institute of Health Visiting's December 2020 report, State of Health Visiting in England, what steps his Department is taking to tackle the projected 20 per cent shortfall in the health visiting workforce in England due to retirements and attrition.
We recognise the valuable role that Health Visitors play in providing advice and support to families. Local authorities received more than £3 billion to commission public health services in the financial year 2020/21. A specialist community and public health nurse apprenticeship is currently being developed to offer an alternative route directly into the health visiting profession and there are nursing apprenticeship pathways currently in place.