A fantastic first leg of the #PlayCommission international visit hearing all about how to put play and children at the heart of education and the community in Billund 🇩🇰 Next stop: Copenhagen!

Just a normal day for these 🇩🇰 5&6 year olds (in kindergarten NOT Yr 1). Outdoors, playing, learning life skills, trusted with Stanley knifes, axes, hammers, secateurs & flints- making pencils & fire at Copenhagen nature park- giving #RaisingtheNation Play Commission 🩷 insight.

Fantastic to see the proposals in our recent report with Child of the North for primary school tooth brushing programmes in areas of high deprivation now being funded and rolled out by the Govt.

Today we’ve published new FOI request data from 80% of local authorities in England showing nearly half of councils report cuts to their budgets for children’s centres and Family Hubs between 2023/24 and 2024/25. centreforyounglives.org.uk/news-centre/ne…

Thanks to all who joined us this morning to discuss our new research on children and family support. centreforyounglives.org.uk/news-centre/ne…

We’ve published a report today into spending on children and young people’s mental health services which reveals a strategic hole and postcode lottery. Fewer than 1/10 ICBs have a dedicated strategy for children and young people’s mental health.

None of the ICBs the Centre has examined had identified children and young people’s mental health as one of their key priorities within their Integrated Care Strategy or Joint Forward Plan.

FOI data suggests ICBs and Mental Health Trusts are spending less than 20% of their commissioning budget on non-specialist, community-based mental health services for children and young people.

Thank you Natasha Irons MP for raising the findings of Centre for Young Lives #GrowingUpWell report in health orals yesterday. The 55% treatment gap for children and young people's mental health should concern us all.

Lots of sun and smiles at a fantastic garden party #BuckinghamPalace yesterday afternoon to recognise the important work of those in education. Lovely to see so many of our great partners Centre for Young Lives Connie Muttock.

Fantastic to join the Minister Stephen Morgan MP and the team at Department for Education recently to discuss the future of mental health support teams in schools with CYPMHC colleagues. A rich discussion about the vital role of schools in supporting CYP mental health and wellbeing.

Great⁩ discussion earlier on ⁦BBC Radio 4⁩ on “grit” and children’s mental health with our Head of Policy ⁦Connie Muttock⁩ as one of the expert panellists. 👇👇 bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m0…

Great to join Adam Fleming & Mark Lehain on the #AntiSocial podcast this afternoon on grit and resilience. I talked about how resilience is important for mental health but we can't just will away the very real crisis children and young people are facing. bbc.co.uk/programmes/m00…

What did the Spending Review offer vulnerable children? Our Head of Policy Connie Muttock analyses last week’s statement and argues children’s social care was one of the biggest beneficiaries. centreforyounglives.org.uk/news-centre/th…

Our new State of the Nation report is out today, exposing the scale and nature of childhood vulnerability in 2025. The report finds a growing number of children are facing serious challenges, with mounting pressures on the systems meant to support them. centreforyounglives.org.uk/news-centre/ce…

Our State of the Nation report today finds that since before the pandemic, more children are: 🔺living in poverty (4.5m) 🔺struggling with mental health (doubled since 2017) 🔺in care (+11%) or living in unregistered homes (+500% since 2021) (1/2)

Young Futures - a "Sure Start for Teenagers" model of support - has huge potential to deliver transformative change. Watch our Executive Chair Baroness Anne Longfield in the House of Lords yesterday on Young Futures, and the Minister Jacqui Smith's response 👇