NCB Now: What the Health Bill will mean for children

First, will the bill lead to children's services becoming more joined up, or more fragmented? If the bill stays as it is, then the answer is probably fragmented. As currently drafted, four different agencies could be commissioning services in the future - the NHS commissioning board for specialist services and under-fives' public health; the new health and wellbeing boards for fiveto 16-year-olds' public health; the consortia of GPs for community health; and the local authority for early years services. One service could once again become the responsibility of everybody and nobody. But one simple NCB amendment requiring the new health and wellbeing boards to promote integrated planning across health, social care and other services could lead to a more joined-up approach.

Second, will the voices of children and young people be listened to? If the bill stays as it is, probably not. There will be a new body called Healthwatch, charged with listening to patient views. But our learning from the past shows that a body charged with listening to everyone tends to ignore the voices of children. Another simple NCB amendment - placing an explicit duty on Healthwatch to work with children - could tackle this too, and some in government have said they might be interested.

This bill will change the face of the NHS. As ever, if you only read the newspapers, you would think that the NHS does not actually treat children at all. NCB is working together with charities who are seeking to influence the bill. Together, we might bring about the changes that we have long awaited, to make our health services responsive to children.

Sir Paul Ennals is chief executive of the NCB