Health Services: Parents

The Government has an ambition to achieve the healthiest generation of children ever. A strong child health focus will need to underpin both the Health and Opportunity Missions.

The zero- to five-year-olds element of the Healthy Child Programme is a universal, personalised service, led by health visitors and family nurses, for new parents, and reaches 97% of families. Every family should be offered five visits, including antenatal and new birth contact, alongside targeted support for families who require additional help. £3.6 billion was allocated to local authorities through the Public Health Grant in 2024/25, which is used to fund the delivery of the Healthy Child Programme.

The Family Hubs and Start for Life Programme provides support for babies and their families in the critical 1,001 days from conception to the age of two. It provides approximately £300 million over three years to 75 local authorities in England with high levels of deprivation to create a network of Family Hubs, with Start for Life services at its core. Support for new parents and carers with babies includes: perinatal mental health support and services, to promote positive early relationships; face-to-face and virtual infant feeding services; and increased capacity for the National Breastfeeding Helpline.

The Healthy Start scheme, introduced in 2006, encourages a healthy diet for pregnant women, babies, and young children under four years old from very low-income households.