About the standards
An initial health assessment is a statutory health appointment for every child or young person who enters the care system in the UK. The IHA encompasses physical, mental and emotional health and wellbeing.
These standards have been developed to improve outcomes for children and young people in care. The standards also aim to set a benchmark for the delivery of IHAs in the UK. They can inform discussions between healthcare professionals, social care, provider organisations and service planners.
You can access the standards document in the ‘Downloads’ section at the end of this page.
How the standards were developed
These standards are based on eight child-led outcomes. The eight outcomes are described as child-led because they centre the perspectives of children and young people while addressing the IHA at the clinician, service and system level.
The outcomes and standards were developed in multi-agency workshops that included paediatricians, social workers, GPs, nurses and researchers.
The outcomes and standards were also shaped by the findings of a literature review, which investigated children and young people’s views on health assessments. CoramBAAF were commissioned to conduct the literature review and the findings report is available in the ‘Downloads’ section at the end of this page. We hope that the report provides a useful foundation for engagement with children and young people on IHAs by professionals and services.
Finally, the standards were refined by the clinical leads and the document was subject to consultation by the RCPCH Child Protection Standing Committee and the project steering group. The steering group included paediatricians, social workers and researchers.
Related documents
The standards are badged by CoramBAAF. In October 2025 CoramBAAF published updated IHA forms, which align with the standards and may be useful to refer to in addition to the standards document.
Other related standards and guidance are listed in the IHA Delivery Standards document.