Child Deaths ‘shocking’ says Bevan Foundation

The Bevan Foundation has said that the latest figures on child deaths in Wales are ‘truly shocking’. Speaking to the Western Mail as figures published by Public Health Wales showed a strong association between deprivation and the risk of death.

Victoria Winckler, director of the Bevan Foundation said:  “The figures on child deaths are truly shocking and show that too many children pay the ultimate price for our unequal society. Many of the deaths are avoidable, and to think that children are dying because their mothers did not have enough money to eat well in pregnancy or heat their homes adequately should shame us all.  It’s no accident that there’s been no improvement in the child death rate for ten years – the child poverty rate has also remained the same over this period.”

She went on to say that the links between poverty and child deaths demanded action: “What we need is action targeted on low-income families in ways that reflect their needs, whether it’s active intervention to help pregnant mothers and new parents to quit smoking, help to access home child safety equipment or help with heating costs.”

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