Celebrities Back UNICEF’s Open Letter to the Government for Urgent Child Support

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Kid toddler sitting on the floor with babysitter playing with colourful blocks together

Celebrities Back UNICEF’s Open Letter to the Government for Urgent Child Support

Celebrities like tennis star Andy Murray and actor Dave Harewood, alongside leading children’s charities such as Save the Children UK are among the top signatories of an open letter sent to Rishi Sunak.

The letter organised by UNICEF challenges the government to commit to the delivery of a national plan, entitled the Baby and Toddler Guarantee, to ensure every young child in the UK have access to a basic service. Families still recovering from the impacts of the pandemic and the current cost of living are facing multiple challenges in accessing vital services to support theirs and their children’s wellbeing, the letter says. Some of those vital services include maternity and health visits support, mental health support, affordable high-quality childcare and support for special educational needs and disabilities provision (SEND).

More than 48,000 people have signed its petition so far, the charity said.

An excerpt from the letter reads “families in Britain need your [the government] help now. Summer holidays are just around the corner and instead of looking forward to fun-packed, carefree days, many families are faced with the worrying reality of not being able to put food on the table as they struggle to make ends meet.”

UNICEF UK’s chief executive Jon Sparkes commented that: “Basic services like health visits and mental health care provide essential support that households need during these turbulent times. They should be there for every baby and young child during their vital early years, but across the country, this isn’t the case and urgent action is needed.”

A government spokesperson said that the government is “providing a holiday and activities food programme which is backed by £200m per year to 2025 and expanding and transforming mental health services in England so that two million more people will be able to get the mental health support they need.”