Responding to the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health’s State of Child Health: Two Years On report, Cllr Ian Hudspeth, Chairman of the Local Government Association’s Community Wellbeing Board, said:
“This report rightly reinforces our call for public health funding reductions to be reversed, in order to help councils protect children’s health and reduce inequalities.
“Local authorities play a crucial role in improving children’s health, from health visitors supporting new parents to weight management and sexual health services. Councils, alongside other partners have made good progress on tackling childhood obesity.
“Public health services face a £700 million real terms reduction in funding from central government. Councils need to be properly resourced if they are to continue to carry out these vital responsibilities.
“Otherwise the progress made in recent years in improving our children’s health could stall and raise the risk of ill-health in the next generation.”