Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the barriers that prevent supermarkets from offering financial top-ups, similar to those offered under the previous paper voucher system, to the NHS Healthy Start scheme under the current digital prepaid card system; and what action they are taking to overcome those barriers.

In August 2026, the Healthy Start Scheme supported over 347,000 people in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. Healthy Start figures are published on the Healthy Start website. To improve uptake, the NHS Business Services Authority promotes the Healthy Start Scheme through its digital channels, online, and via traditional advertising opportunities, event exhibits, and through working with stakeholders and the media.

In relation to the number of eligible individuals who are not yet claiming the Healthy Start Scheme, I refer the Noble Lord to the answer provided in the House of Commons on 20 April 2026 in response to Question 124608, which, for ease of reference, is reproduced below.

We do not hold data on the proportion of families eligible to participate in the Healthy Start Scheme. As of 26 March 2026, there were 354,989 people on the digital scheme across England, Wales, and Northern Ireland.

The data is based on individual people and is not the same as the number of families or households as there could be multiple beneficiaries living within one household.

The data includes the number of people on the digital scheme, formerly entitled beneficiaries, who have been accepted onto the scheme through an online application and issued a prepaid card at a specific point in time. This includes the number of children under the age of four years old and the number of pregnancies over ten weeks.

We continue to work with retailers on ways they can support the Healthy Start scheme, including on technical solutions to provide top-ups.