Foreword (Health Protection Agency):
I warmly welcome this Children’s Environment and Health Strategy and the work being taken forward across Europe to protect the health of children from environmental hazards. This is vital to improve the health not only of children, but also of the adults they will become and future generations.
The Children’s Environment and Health Action Plan covers a very broad area of environmental hazards, many of which are already being addressed within the UK. However, we cannot be complacent. I support the proposed approach of building on current initiatives, ensuring there is better coordination across government and tackling locations such as schools and homes. The identification of examples of good practice and the sharing of these across the UK should help make changes more effective and coherent.
This approach of linking the environment to the health of children will help drive forward change and this strategy identifies some important areas where this is required. These include some longstanding concerns such as hygiene in schools, injuries and health inequalities and also areas which are becomingly increasingly important such as obesity, skin cancers and the long-term chronic effects of the increasing number of chemicals and pollutants in our environment. This forward looking approach will also help ensure that new concerns such as climate change are addressed.
I look forward to seeing how the action plan evolves from this strategy and extend my support for this. The establishment of the first cross-government and devolved administration working group to take this forward emphasises the importance of this work.
I especially appreciate the involvement of young people in this initiative and that their views have been taken into consideration in its development. I recognise the added value this will bring together with how essential their involvement and support is to the success of this strategy.
Professor Pat Troop
Chief Executive
Health Protection Agency
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