King's Fund warns 'entire generation' at risk as school nurses fall 38% since 2010
The King's Fund says school nurses have been 'hollowed out' while the wider NHS nursing workforce grew by a third, warning children's health has reached 'crisis point'.
School nurses have been “hollowed out” from England’s health services while the wider nursing workforce grew, putting children’s health at “crisis point”, a King’s Fund analysis has warned.
The think tank found the number of full-time equivalent school nurses fell 38% — from a peak of 3,026 in January 2010 to 1,862 in June 2026. Over the same period, the wider NHS nursing workforce excluding general practice grew 32%, from 281,064 to 371,725.
Health visitors, who support families from pregnancy to school age, have fared worse: the King’s Fund analysis found their numbers fell from 10,309 in October 2015 to about 5,600 in June 2026 — nearly half.
The findings are published ahead of the think tank’s new report, What does the health and care system look like for children in England?, out today. It warns “an entire generation” risks missing out on preventative care for issues from mental health and obesity to asthma and epilepsy, as stretched nurses spend more time on safeguarding and less on prevention. Funding for children’s services from the public health grant has been cut 16% in real terms since 2016/17, it said.
King’s Fund policy adviser Niamh Buckingham said the findings exposed “a stark gap between the government’s ambition to create the healthiest generation of children and the reality facing children, schools, families and the staff working tirelessly to support them”.
A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said the government was committed to strengthening health visiting and school nurse services, and pointed to the rollout of mental health support teams across every education setting in England under the 10 Year Health Plan.
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