Source · Select Committees · Petitions Committee
Recommendation 20
20
Not Addressed
Paragraph: 64
Ahead of the 2021 Spending Review, we recommend that the Government assess which elements of...
Recommendation
Ahead of the 2021 Spending Review, we recommend that the Government assess which elements of the Best Start for Life Review’s implementation could be accelerated—in particular, opportunities to grow the health visiting workforce—and provide targeted funding to help achieve this.
Government Response Summary
The government's response did not address the recommendation to assess and accelerate elements of the Best Start for Life Review implementation, particularly growing the health visiting workforce and providing targeted funding. Instead, it focused on the importance and safety of COVID-19 vaccination for pregnant women.
Paragraph Reference:
64
Government Response
Not Addressed
HM Government
Not Addressed
The Government has announced a £500 million families and early years support package of investment for the next three years. This will ensure children get the best start in life. the Rt Hon Andrea Leadsom MP’s ‘Best Start for Life: A Vision for the 1,001 Critical Days ’, which found that the first 1001 days, from conception until the age 2, are critical to laying the building blocks for lifelong emotional and physical health. The report called for action to ensure that babies and families have access to the services they need to thrive. The recent funding includes £100 million for bespoke mental health support for new and expectant parents, £82 million to expand the network of Family Hubs to a further 75 Local Authorities across England, and £10 million for Local Authorities to trial and test new and innovative recruitment models to train up more staff. Nursery staff will also have access to more high-quality training funded by a separate £153 million investment announced as part of the £1.4 billion education recovery package in Summer 2021. To best utilise the capacity of professional health visitors, many local authorities use a mixed skills workforce, led by health visitors, with other staff supporting health visitors to deliver particular elements of the health visiting programme.