Healthy Child Record Standard
The PRSB has produced a standard for child health records to support the Healthy Child Programme and its prevention agenda. This innovative standard helps everyone involved in caring for children to share information using standardised paperless digital records. It aims to streamline the sharing of critical health information, ultimately enhancing the efficiency and quality of care for children across various health services.
Current release
Version: Amd 56/2024 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Release date | May 2025 | ||
Release notes |
The standard was updated to support the addition of reporting fields for Hereditary Tyrosinaemia (HT1) to the Newborn Blood Spot Screening (NBS) included within the standard and data collection. Other additional minor amendments included updates to two key Sickle cell screening outcome codes which are causing potential clinical incidents, and an additional decline sub-code for all screened conditions. | ||
Status | Active | ||
Formal Approvals & Endorsement | DAPB: DAPB3009 Healthy Child Programme Endorsed by key professional bodies and stakeholders. For England the Data Alliance Partnership Board (DAPB) has delegated authority from the secretary of state for health to approve and mandate standards including under section 250 of the Health and Social Care Act 2012. | ||
Next release date | TBC | ||
Next release type | Standard 3-year review | ||
Commissioner | NHS Digital, now NHS England | ||
The standard | |
|---|---|
Full standard (NHS England) | DAPB3009 Healthy Child Programme |
Supporting documentation | Description/purpose |
|---|---|
Technical specifications | Should local areas wish to share data in their region then this should be done as an electronic message. These are available on NHS Developer Network and will be updated as the development cycle continues. |
Section specific implementation guidance | This PRSB document includes detailed guidance, specific to the Healthy Child Record Standard. |
Final report (PRSB) | Describes the purpose, methodolgy and stakeholder engagement for developing the standard, along with the findings and recommendations for further work. |
Safety case report | Summarises the hazards which could result from implementing the standard. |
 | Summarises the hazards which could result from implementing the standard. |
Need implementation support?
- Online support form
- Support@theprsb.org
- 020 4551 5225 (9-5 Mon-Fri, excl. bank holidays)
About this standard
The Healthy Child Record Standard outlines what information on screening tests, immunisations, and developmental milestones should be accessible to make sure that children receive appropriate care. The goal is that everyone involved in a child’s care, including parents, will in the future have secure access to a standardised set of paperless, digital child health records.
Whilst the focus has been the Healthy Child Programme, the information models developed may support recording for other purposes within a child health record. The standard also provides a foundation for digital personal child health records, using new infrastructure and messaging to provide interoperability for digital personal child health records (DPCHR). The aim being to supplement or replace paper Redbooks, making it easier for families to hold online records for their children and access them via smartphones, laptops and tablets.
Scope
The Healthy Child Record standard covers, at a summary level, the scope of the Healthy Child Programme and the Personal Child Health Record. This standard applies to the following key groups and organisations that provide health care and services to children:
- Primary Care services
- Child Health organisations
- Community services
- School Nursing services
- Maternity services
- Health Visiting services
- Screening Laboratories
- All organisations providing NHS England and NHS Improvement commissioned immunisation services for children.
Out of Scope:
The following areas are out of scope and have not been considered as a part of this project:
- Maternal drugs in pregnancy (which may affect the baby)
- Concealed pregnancies
- Care plans
- Other birth related procedures and issues (water births, induction, delayed cord clamping, still births)
Further resources
- Standards explained
PRSB’s guide to standards which sets out the purpose and benefits of using standards and how to support frontline professionals to adopt them. - Managing incorrect information in health records – IHRIM Good Practice Guidance
Despite vigilance when filing information in records, mistakes can occur. The Institute of Health Records and Information Management has guidance to support professionals in making corrections following errors. - First child health events workshop
- PRSB publishes new standard for sharing child health information
- RCPCH adopts PRSB standards as part of its new child health network
Endorsement
This standard has been endorsed by the following organisations:
- Association of British Paediatric Nurses
- British & Irish Orthoptic Society
- British Academy of Childhood Disability
- British Association of Community Child Health
- British Association of Perinatal Medicine
- British Dietetic Association
- Chartered Society of Physiotherapy
- Community Practitioners and Health Visitors Association
- Institute of Health Records Information Management (IHRIM)
- Royal College of General Practitioners
- Royal College of Midwives
- Royal College of Nursing
- Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists
- Royal College of Occupational Therapists
- Royal College of Paediatrics & Child Health
- Royal College of Physicians
- Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists
- techUK
Supported by:
Clinical leadership was provided by the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health (RCPCH) and the Royal College of General Practitioners (RCGP). Work was conducted in partnership with the Royal College of Physicians (RCP) Health Informatics Unit (HIU).