Eating Disorders: Young People
The question
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to WPQ 89628 answered on 20 November 2025, whether his Department plans to set targets regarding the improvement of community care for young people with eating disorders.
Answered by Dr Zubir Ahmed
Eating disorders have a devastating impact on young people’s lives and Lord Darzi’s investigation found that people accessing National Health Service mental health services are waiting too long, receive variable quality of care, and suffer from entrenched inequalities. This Government has already taken significant steps to stabilise and improve NHS mental health services but there is much more to do.
Although there are currently no plans to set targets regarding the improvement of community care for young people with eating disorders, more young people are being supported to access NHS mental health services. Between July and September 2025, 3,010 young people with eating disorder issues entered treatment, which is an increase of 14% compared to the same period last year. This is helped by almost 7,000 extra mental health workers being recruited since July 2024, against our target of 8,500 by the end of this Parliament.
The 10-Year Health Plan aims to shift more care to the community and reform the health system, including eating disorder services, to adopt more neighbourhood models of working where cross-sector collaboration is the norm.
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