Spotlight on the child health workforce in England 2025 - policy briefing

Paediatricians are working hard to provide high quality care for an increasing number of children, but without proper support they continue to face an uphill battle. In this policy briefing, we set out principles and recommendations to support the development of a new long-term workforce plan in England and that will help realise the government’s ambition to raise the healthiest generation of children ever.

Our postcard lists our eight principles for change

We call for our principles for change to be embedded within every part of the health system. They sit alongside a suite of recommendations across our four key focus areas.

View below or download at the bottom of this page:


The lack of focus on children in policy, and especially in health policy, has resulted in children and young people having some of the worst health outcomes in Europe. Post-pandemic demand on child health services has continued to increase at an unprecedented rate.

Against this backdrop, the child health workforce works hard to continue to provide high quality care. However, they're increasingly challenged as they face rising demand and increased complexity. 

This briefing - a spotlight on the child health workforce - seeks to address this putting forward principles and recommendation to support the development of a new long-term workforce plan in England and to build the child health workforce of the future. Following on from our blueprint for child health services, the spotlight briefing highlights pressures the workforce is under and the implications of this for child health alongside detailed recommendations in four key areas: training and recruitment, retention and wellbeing, collaborative care and workforce planning. 

For too long and far too often, the UK’s health systems have not been required or encouraged to “think child”... In the context of radical health service reform and a new 10 Year Health Plan for the NHS in England, we have an opportunity to build and support a child health workforce to deliver the standard of care that our children deserve.

Dr Kay Tyerman, RCPCH Officer for Workforce Planning 

Our policy briefing

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