Seven months after it was formed by the Secretary of State for Health, the Children and Young People’s Health Outcomes Forum has published its first report into the health needs of children and young people in the UK. 

The report is the result of conversations with over 2,000 children, young people, families and organisations working within the health and social care system, of which we were one. 

With a large proportion of all cases of meningitis occurring in children and young people, we are committed to helping them get the support they need following meningitis and are their voice to ensure there is better understanding of the disease and its impact; within the health, education and social care system. Taking an active role in projects like this is an essential part of our dedication to this age group – making sure that all those affected by meningitis have a brighter future. 

We are delighted to see that the report highlighted the need to ‘put children, young people and their families at the heart of what happens’ and that ‘acting early and intervening at the right time’ is better for all concerned. Both of these, teamed with the focus area of ‘education’, which was mentioned in the report, lend their support to our education campaign’s goal to better support child victims of meningitis in school. 

For more information on the other recommendations, conclusions or areas of focus from the report, click here.

Our education campaign is asking for every child victim of meningitis to get automatic, appropriate and timely assessments throughout their educational life – identifying issues early on and ensuring the right support is put in place. Getting this support early on will allow children to have a brighter future by reaching their full potential. Part of this campaign is a petition to the Government, highlighting this ask and backed up with research we commissioned into the true impact of the disease on children and young people. 

We’ve reached 14,000 signatures on our petition and have delivered these to Downing Street, but if you haven’t signed yet, we still need you to add your name to our fight. It’s only together that we can really help to make change happen.