Find out more about the All Party Parliamentary Group on the Health Equity North website.

We provide the Secretariat for this group which is co-chaired by Emma Lewell-Buck MP and Mary Robinson MP.

The group brings together key sector organisations and MPs from across the political spectrum. Our purpose is to create a fairer future for children across the North of England and develop policy solutions that will tackle the stark inequalities across our region so we can enable the children of the North to fulfil their potential.

The Child of the North APPG holds regular meetings with its members to discuss issues regarding children in the North. It aims to develop policy solutions that will create lasting change. The Child of the North also provides a platform for people with direct experience of poverty to engage with parliamentarians and key sector stakeholders and help inform the political dialogue surrounding the issues that face children in the North.

Recent Activity:

On October 19, 2022 the Child of the North APPG held its inaugural meeting and evidence session in parliament.

At the meeting, Emma Lewell-Buck, Member of Parliament for South Shields, and Mary Robinson, Member of Parliament for Cheadle were confirmed as co-chairs of the group. The vice-chairs are Kim Johnson, Member of Parliament for Liverpool Riverside, Rachel Maskell, Member of Parliament for York Central, and Sharon Hodgson, Member of Parliament for Washington and Sunderland West.

The APPG will build on the Northern Health Science Alliance and N8 Research Partnership’s s Child of the North Report, and this first inquiry and evidence session focused on the cost-of-living crisis and child poverty across the North.

Professor Kate Pickett, University of York, and Professor David Taylor-Robinson, University of Liverpool provided an overview of the Child of the North report and discussed the stark findings. Children in the North are more likely to live in poor families and will have suffered larger cuts in public services than elsewhere. These inequalities contribute to the North-South productivity gap, and we need to see place-based-child focused policies that address these inequalities.

The evidence session included invaluable contributions from

• Dr Carolyn Snell, University of York
• Dr Rachel Loopstra, University of Liverpool
• Anna Turley, Chair, North East Child Poverty Commission
• Amanda Bailey, Director, North East Child Poverty Commission
• Sophie Balmer, Youth Ambassador, End Child Poverty Coalition

Officers as of the Inaugural Meeting 19 October 2022

Chair and Registered Contact:

• Emma Lewell- Buck, Member of Parliament for South Shields, Labour Party

Co-Chairs

• Mary Robinson, Member of Parliament for Cheadle, Conservative Party

Vice Chairs

• Kim Johnson, Member of Parliament for Liverpool Riverside, Labour Party
• Rachael Maskell, Member of Parliament for York Central, Labour Party
• Sharon Hodgson, Member of Parliament for Washington West, Labour Party

Officers

• Catherine McKinnell, Member of Parliament for Newcastle upon Tyne, Labour Party
• Mary Glindon, Member of Parliament for North Tyneside, Labour Party
• Peter Gibson, Member of Parliament for Darlington, Conservative Party
• Mike Amesbury, Member of Parliament for Weaver Vale, Labour Party
• Liz Twist, Member of Parliament for Blaydon, Labour Party
• Mary Foy, Member of Parliament for the City of Durham, Labour Party
• Simon Fell, Member of Parliament for Barrow and Furness, Conservative Party
• Baroness Blake of Leeds, Labour Party
• Bishop of Durham, No Party

Meetings 

Next Meeting

• 25 January 2023 – time and location TBC

2022 Child of the North APPG Meetings

• Minutes from the inaugural meeting – 19 October 2022
• Minutes from the report session meeting – 14 December 2022
• Report Launch – Child Poverty and the Cost of Living Crisis 

Contact Us:

Please contact the Child of the North APPG at: alexis.darby@theNHSA.co.uk