Published on 9 April 2026, a month before the election, the open letter calls on all candidates to take child health seriously and commit to long‑term investment in services and the workforce that cares for Scotland’s children. It also highlights the impact of child poverty on health and wellbeing, and the importance of acting early to prevent problems becoming worse.
Read our letter
Scotland’s children cannot wait: An open letter to election candidates
A month before the Holyrood elections, we write as members of the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health (°µÍø½ûÇø) Scotland to urge you to seize a critical opportunity. Scotland’s children need decisive action now.
Every day, paediatricians see the stark realities facing children and families:
- Long waiting times for essential care
- Mounting pressures on an overstretched workforce
- Rising mental health concerns
- The devastating impact of poverty
We are calling for a Prescription for Change: a clear, unwavering commitment from the next Scottish Parliament to put children and young people at the centre of policymaking, strengthen child health services and support the paediatric workforce that cares for them.
What does prioritising child health mean?
It starts with investment — real, long-term investment — in the services and people who care for Scotland’s children.
- Greater and sustained investment in child health services, both in hospitals and in the community across Scotland
- Equitable investment in the child health workforce, relative to adult services, recognising the increasing complexity and demand in paediatric care
- Support to expand and retain the workforce, ensuring services are sustainable, responsive and accessible
- Action to reduce child poverty, recognising it as the single biggest driver of poor child health and a fundamental barrier to equitable outcomes
Action must go beyond reducing waiting times. We need a commitment to child-centred, community based services that prioritise the health, wellbeing and lived experiences of children and young people. This must include bold action to reduce child poverty, which underpins so many of the health inequalities paediatricians see every day.
Without a well supported, adequately resourced workforce, services cannot meet growing demand or provide the early, specialist care children need to thrive.
The 2026 election is a turning point
This is an opportunity to move beyond short term fixes and commit to a bold, long term vision: one where every child receives timely, compassionate and high quality care.
Children and young people deserve better. Families deserve better. And the paediatric workforce needs the resources and support to deliver the care they require.
Our call to action
We urge you to:
- Publicly commit to prioritising child health in your campaign pledges
- Support positive change for child health on social media using #PrescriptionForChange
- If elected, meet with our representatives within the first 100 days and work with us to ensure every child in Scotland has access to timely, equitable and compassionate care
Yours sincerely,
Dr Lynn Macleod, °µÍø½ûÇø Officer for Scotland
Signed by 230 members of the paediatric workforce in Scotland
Children’s Health Scotland has welcomed the letter and reinforced the need for clear political leadership to improve services and outcomes for children and young people:
"Children’s Health Scotland stands firmly alongside the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health (°µÍø½ûÇø) Scotland in calling for a bold and sustained commitment to improving child health ahead of the 2026 Holyrood elections.
"Every child in Scotland has the right to the best possible health and wellbeing, and this must be placed at the centre of national decision making. The pressures facing children, young people and their families, long waits for treatment, rising mental health concerns, widening inequalities and the deep impact of poverty, require urgent and decisive action.
"Through our work with families, practitioners and communities across Scotland, we see every day how vital it is that children receive support early, locally and in ways that uphold their rights, respect their experiences and meet their needs. Strengthening community services, reducing health inequalities and ensuring compassionate, person centred care are key to improving outcomes and giving children the best start in life.
"We therefore welcome °µÍø½ûÇø Scotland’s Prescription for Change and strongly support its call for long term investment in child health services and in the workforce that sustains them. Improving outcomes for children and young people must be a national priority, not just in policy, but in practice.
"As Scotland approaches a pivotal election, we urge all candidates and parties to put children’s health at the forefront of their commitments. Scotland’s children deserve timely, equitable and high quality care, and the workforce that supports them must be empowered and resourced to deliver it.
"Children’s Health Scotland stands with the °µÍø½ûÇø Scotland ready to work with the next Scottish Parliament to help make this vision a reality."