BMA report raises concerns over UK child welfare

The British Medical Association (BMA) has raised concerns in a report that the UK's child welfare standards are below-par, a trend that is being exacerbated by the policies of the current government.

Growing Up in the UK is an updated version of a similar report issued in 1999 and notes that although Britain has made some strides forward on the front in the last 15 years, the coalition's changes to welfare policy has out this progress at risk.

It suggested that cuts to welfare benefits and social care are likely to exacerbate child poverty and widen social inequalities, while 2012 analysis from the Department of Health showed that more children and young people are dying in the UK than in other northern and western European nations.

To counteract this trend, the BMA recommends that steps such as parenting classes, improved maternal nutrition and better targeting of at-risk families should be taken as soon as possible.

Professor Averil Mansfield, chairman of the BMA's board of science, said: "Children should not pay the price for the economic downturn. Every child in the UK deserves a start in life that will help them achieve their true potential."

Earlier this month, the organisation expressed disappointment at the omission of any public health legislation from the Queen's Speech, such as the introduction of a minimum unit price for alcohol.