Can Scotland break the cycle of childhood health inequalities?
A new report calls for urgent action to combat child poverty.
The report, published by the Royal Society of Edinburgh (RSE) in partnership with the Mental Health Foundation, draws on the findings of a national workshop of experts, practitioners, and community voices.
The report warns that childhood health inequalities will persist without a decisive shift from short-term, reactive measures to long-term, preventative approaches.
The findings reveal that children in Scotland’s most deprived areas – from Greenock town centre and Ferguslie in Paisley to Merkinch in Inverness and Linlathen in Dundee – are significantly more likely to experience poor health outcomes.
For example, they are ten times more likely to be exposed to tobacco smoke while in utero, they are twice as likely to be born with low birthweight and three times more likely to die within their first year.
Yet despite numerous strategies and frameworks, fragmented implementation, short political cycles, and limited resources continue to undermine progress, the report claims.
Among its recommendations are:
- Closer collaboration and funding between researchers, policymakers, and practitioners.
- Improved and inclusive data collection and evaluation.
- Better access to health data, particularly for early-career researchers.
- Prioritisation of research on pressing issues such as mental health, digital bullying, and in-work poverty.
The findings reveal critical gaps in how research informs policy and how national strategies are implemented locally. Participants in the workshop called for improved, inclusive data collection that reflects children’s diverse experiences, and for policies to be co-designed with the communities they serve.
There is also a push for policies to be designed with communities, not just for them. Better data, inclusive research, and substantive local engagement were all highlighted as missing.
The report concludes that overcoming childhood health inequalities will require long-term investment, political courage, and a willingness to listen – especially to those whose voices are too often left out.
Julie Cameron, an alumnus of the Young Academy of Scotland and Associate Director, Mental Health Foundation said: “Every child deserves the chance to grow up healthy, happy, safe, and supported. Childhood health inequalities in Scotland are deeply unjust, but they are not inevitable. Scotland needs a bold, joined-up preventative policy approach, rooted in equity and empathy to effectively tackle these inequalities.”
