Health
I want all children to grow up feeling happy, healthy and well, with access to support quickly and locally when they need it.
Children should be able to play, learn, spend time with people that they love and be part of their community regardless of any health condition or disability. It means children with mental health conditions get the support they need, when they need it – including early intervention to ensure children do not reach crisis.
This is why in 2023, I followed up on concerns children had raised with me about vaping and made sure new powers in the Tobacco and Vapes Act are protecting the health of children and young people. In 2026, I published a report on the often-hidden stories of children with long stays in hospital whose complex needs and circumstances mean their childhoods are far from ordinary. I published data (making it public for the first time) on how long children are spending in hospital, finding over a generation of children, 240,000 children spent three weeks or more in hospital, 34,000 spent over three months and 1300 children over a year.
Focus a lot more on preventative measures in relation to healthcare this will take strain off NHS and be much cheaper.
Boy, 15, The Big Ambition
Latest Reports
Disabled children’s access to play and activities
22 July 2026
My first act as Children’s Commissioner was to listen to children. My 2021 survey of over half a million young people, The Big Ask, found that children of all backgrounds and abilities, right across the country, were happy, optimistic, and determined. But it was undeniable that some children – particularly many disabled children – face […]
Report
Children’s and Young People’s Mental Health Services: 2024-25
29 June 2026
As I enter my final year as Children’s Commissioner, one thing is clear: before we make decisions that affect young people, we need to listen to young people. Children’s mental health is no exception. I am in no doubt that we are facing a crisis in young people’s mental health. The number of children with a referral […]
Report
My Plan for the year, 2026-27
31 March 2026
I’ve designed a version of my Business Plan aimed specifically for children and young people, sharing the projects and themes that my office will be working on. As Children’s Commissioner for England, it is my job to listen to you and take your voices to decision makers. This will be my sixth and final year […]
Report
Business Plan, 2026-27
2026–27 will be my final year as Children’s Commissioner, marking the conclusion of a six-year term that began in March 2021. It is a moment to take stock of how children’s lives have changed during that time, and to focus on the work that still needs to be done to give every child in England […]
Report
Children waiting to leave hospital
23 March 2026
Recently I visited a children’s hospital where I came across a little girl. She was tiny but said hello confidently. I asked who she was – and was told that she lived at the hospital. She was not too sick to leave, but her parents were unable – or unwilling – to take her home, […]
Report
The Mental Health Bill: Briefing for Report stage
13 October 2025
The Children’s Commissioner’s role is to promote and protect the rights of children, including by advising on legislation which affects children. She has a particular duty towards those children with a social worker, in care, or living away from home – including those in mental health inpatient settings. Her advocacy services, Help at Hand, regularly […]
Report
School Census: Improving safety and accountability for vulnerable children
24 September 2025
As Children’s Commissioner I have the privilege of speaking to and working with thousands of professionals supporting children in every aspect of their lives. I know first-hand how caring and dedicated the vast majority of them are, and how the relationships they build with children can be transformative. But I have also seen the other […]
Report
The Children’s Plan: The Children’s Commissioner’s School Census
8 September 2025
Read The Children’s Plan: The Children’s Commissioner’s School Census in full. Read the Summary version. For the first time as Children’s Commissioner, I have used my statutory powers to ask all schools, and colleges, a set of questions. A census in response to what children told me they wanted and needed to attend, engage, attain, […]
Report
Growing up in a low-income family: Children’s experiences
8 July 2025
This report should not have to exist. Shining a light on children’s experiences of poverty in 2025, in one of the wealthiest countries in the world, should not be necessary. And yet, the findings in this work highlight real hardship; an almost-Dickensian level of poverty facing some children in England today. After four years as […]
Report
My work so far…
Mental health
It is my job to make sure we never lose sight of the biggest challenges affecting children – mental health is one of the most significant. Each year, I publish a report to shine a spotlight on the state of children’s mental health services in England. Every child has a right to a safe, healthy childhood – which means not sitting on a list waiting for treatment. I will continue to ask the tough questions until there is a comprehensive plan to ensure that every child gets the support and help they need to thrive at the earliest opportunity.
