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 whether there is a link between maternal mental health and children's outcomes.

The Five Year Forward View for Mental Health (2016) recognises that maternal ‘mental health problems not only affect the health of mothers but can also have longstanding effects on children’s emotional, social and cognitive development.’

The first 1,000 days of life are a critical time for brain development, and parents and carers have a fundamental role to play in supporting their child’s early development.

Ensuring that all women receive access to the right type of care during the perinatal period is therefore a key Government priority. Reducing the impact of maternal mental health problems during pregnancy and the first two years of life is important for infant mental health and future adolescent and adult mental health.

The NHS Long Term Plan includes a commitment for a further 24,000 women to be able to access specialist perinatal mental health care by 2023/24, building on the additional 30,000 women who will access these services each year by 2020/21 under pre-existing plans.