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Healthy
start for Doncaster families
9 January 2007
Health Ministers
Rosie Winterton, MP for Doncaster Central and Caroline
Flint, MP for Don Valley together with Cllr. Eva Hughes,
Cabinet Member for children and young people's services
at Doncaster Metropolitan Borough Council, will be available
at the Wheatley Sure Start Children's Centre, (Old Middle
School) Beckett Road, Wheatley, Doncaster at 9.00 a.m.
for a photo call to highlight the Government's Healthy
Start programme.
The Healthy Start programme, launched
by Public Health Minister Caroline Flint on 27 November
2006 replaces the Welfare Food Scheme, and will benefit
families on low income and encourage a healthy diet
from the early stages of a child's life. Caroline said:
"Poor diet can have a real impact on people's health.
This new scheme will not only provide greater choice
of healthy food, but will also mean that children can
get milk and fresh fruit and vegetables from the cradle
up, helping to give them the best possible start in
life."
Rosie Winterton MP said: "Healthy
Start is going to be particularly important for those
Doncaster families managing on low incomes. A healthy
diet is important but for everyone, but for families
on low income this is sometimes easier said than done.
"Healthy Start provides an opportunity
for low-income pregnant women and children to receive
information and advice from health professionals on
breastfeeding and healthy eating and get vouchers to
help keep the family healthy."
The programme will better support
mothers who breastfeed by introducing equal benefits
for both breastfeeding and bottle-feeding mothers, increase
flexibility, allowing parents to buy fruit & vegetables,
as well as milk. It will also deliver faster, simpler
reimbursement for retailers, free vitamin supplements
will be an important part of the new scheme and for
the first time the scheme will be open to all pregnant
women under the age of 18.
Cllr Eva Hughes said: "I
welcome this initiative which compliments the council's
Extended Fruits into Schools project and the improved
school meals."
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