Date published: 14 March 2025 by Sophie Wichman

Zillah Bingley, Chief Executive, Rainbow Trust Children’s Charity, said:

As we wait to hear the finer details and the full extent of the impact that abolishing NHS England will have, we hope the changes improve the lives of seriously ill children and their families navigating devastating diagnoses within the NHS.

Rainbow Trust, the leading providers of children’s social palliative care, urges the government to use this as an opportunity to provide funding for much-needed improvements to children's social palliative care. There is a need for a clearer understanding that good palliative care involves a holistic approach, combining the essential aspects of social care both for the terminally ill child and wider family with the clinical needs of the child.

It is said that the move will save billions of pounds in efficiencies and so improve waiting times for patients, re-address funding priorities and accelerate improvements within the NHS. However, as articulated by Alison Bennett MP yesterday, we must ensure that social care is not forgotten.

Rainbow Trust agrees that there is huge potential for a more integrated way of working, reducing duplication and freeing up funds for the type of support we provide to families and their seriously ill child. As the Department for Health and Social Care begins to settle into its new role, Rainbow Trust urges it to explore how commissioning should change to ensure a smoother flow of health and social care to those who need it.

Above all, commissioning must be truly integrated, including with the voluntary sector as equal partners in care, to maintain momentum and deliver effective care.

Families and patients must remain the priority, with their voices heard and not lost amid the complexities of such a significant restructure.