UK born children are often worse off than those in other rich countries, report finds

The stalling infant mortality rates in the UK should be a “wake up call” for the nation, according to leading paediatricians.

The UK is fifth from the bottom among 27 European countries for infant mortality. The rate stalled in the UK between 2013 and 2018 at 3.9 per 1000 live births. In England and Wales, the rate is more than twice as high in the most deprived areas (5 per 1000) compared with the least deprived areas (2.7 per 1000).

In the State of Child Health 2020 report,1 the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health said the UK is “lagging far behind other countries” in terms of health and wellbeing and that children born …