Northern Ireland

Members working in Northern Ireland and Republic of Ireland are represented at College Council by the Officer for Ireland - find out useful contacts and activity on your College region's web page

Resource

State of Child Health 2026: Northern Ireland - Quick read

State of Child Health 2026 provides an overview of children’s health across the UK, analysing progress against 12 key child health indicators, and sets out a roadmap for change. By placing children at the centre of policy, funding and service design, Northern Ireland can build a health system that g...

Health policy

News

Children’s health in Northern Ireland in ‘shocking decline’ warn paediatricians

7 September 2026

Children in Northern Ireland are experiencing worsening outcomes in areas such as obesity, mental health, asthma and even infant mortality.

Document

Every child thriving: Advancing child health in Northern Ireland - 2027 election manifesto

Ahead of the 2027 elections in Northern Ireland, our manifesto sets out a clear and achievable roadmap for the next Executive to advance child health. With insights from both paediatricians and children and young people, we call for investment in the workforce, data, child health services and preven...

Data

Public affairs and campaigning

Public health

Service design

Workforce

News

The UK is raising one of the unhealthiest generations in decades, paediatricians warn

14 July 2026

The UK now has some of the worst outcomes for children in Europe, with declining vaccination rates and rising asthma admissions and mental health disorders. Paediatricians warn that, without urgent action, the UK is on track to raise one of the unhealthiest generations of children in decades.

Document

State of Child Health 2026: Oral health

This indicator examines the rate of tooth decay by reporting the proportion of children aged 5 years with obvious tooth decay across England, Scotland and Wales. Data for Northern Ireland were last collected in 2018 and are not included.

Oral health

Health policy

Document

State of Child Health 2026: Obesity

This indicator looks at the prevalence of children across the UK who are overweight or obese when they start primary school compared to when they finish by measuring a child’s body mass index (BMI).

Document

State of Child Health 2026: Vaping and smoking

This indicator reports primarily on youth vaping trends by examining the proportion of children aged 15 who are e-cigarette users, including those who have ever tried an e-cigarette and those who currently vape, across the UK.

Document

State of Child Health 2026: Emotional health and wellbeing

This is a child and young person-led indicator, selected through a UK-wide engagement and ballot process and further developed with children and young people across the UK to reflect what emotional health and wellbeing support should look like and how it should be measured.

Children and young people's voice

Document

State of Child Health 2026: Early childhood development

This indicator assesses whether children have met the expected developmental outcomes as they enter primary school. It provides an indication of their overall health and wellbeing at a key milestone, and whether children have received access to the support they needed to ensure the best start in lif...

Infant health

Document

State of Child Health 2026: Headline recommendations

Our 12 indicators provide a practical framework for current and future governments to track and measure progress on children’s health outcomes. We make three key recommendations: improve data, set national targets and invest in children’s health.

Health policy