What happens during pregnancy and the early years of a child’s life has a big impact on their physical and emotional health later on. In Slough, we focus on giving every child the best start - especially during the important stage from pregnancy to age two.
Slough’s Child Population
- Around 43,800 children and young people (under 18) live in Slough (ONS 2023), making up 28% of the population - the 2nd highest proportion in England
- Despite a drop in fertility rates in 2021, Slough still has one of the highest total fertility rates in England (ONS 2023).
Birth & Infant Health
- 2,116 live births in Slough (2021)
- 4.4% of term babies had low birth weight (under 2,500g), significantly worse than England’s 2.8%
- Infant mortality rate: 5.6 deaths per 1,000 live births, worse than England’s 3.9.
Maternal & Early Childhood Health
- 6.7% of mothers smoked during pregnancy (better than England’s 9.1%)
- 81.1% of newborns received breast milk as their first feed (higher than England’s 71.7%)
- Data on continued breastfeeding at 6-8 weeks is unavailable.
Childhood Obesity & Dental Health
- 11.2% of Reception children and 25.7% of Year 6 children are obese - Year 6 has the highest rate in Southeast England
- 37.9% of 5-year-olds have experienced dental decay, significantly worse than England’s 23.4%.
Vaccination & Child Poverty
MMR vaccine coverage is below the 95% target:
- 86.6% of 2-year-olds received their first dose
- 84.5% of 5-year-olds received their second dose.
23.2% of under-16s live in relative low - income families ( over 9,000 children), higher than England’s 18.5% and rising.