NEWS
IN BRIEF
Short news updates from the early years sector and beyond.
CHILD HEALTH
The government has announced a new £175 million genetic screening programme, due to launch next year, which will screen 100,000 newborn children for genes associated with 200 uncommon conditions.
SCARLET FEVER
There were 6,601 identified cases of scarlet fever between 12 September and 4 December 2022 in the UK – up from 2,538 in the last comparable season in 2017 to 2018.
SCHOOLS BILL ABANDONED
The government has scrapped the Schools Bill, which would have created a register of children not in school and supported all schools to join multi-academy trusts.