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The majority of children and young people who stayed in hospital overnight or were seen as a day case patient were happy with the care they received, said that they felt involved in decisions about their treatment and that their privacy was respected. Many parents and carers were equally as positive with 71% of those surveyed saying their child was ‘very well’ looked after overall.

Published today (Thursday 22 May), the results of the 2024 Children and Young People’s Patient Experience Survey reveal what over 25,800 children and young people under the age of 16 and their parents and carers said about the hospital care they received during March, April and May 2024.

Three-quarters (73%) of children and young people aged 8 to 15 who took part in the survey said they were ‘very well’ looked after while in hospital and more than 8 in 10 (83%) said they were ‘always’ given enough privacy. Linked to this, 84% of young people aged 12 to 15 years said they were able to talk to staff without their parent or carer being there as much as they wanted.

Most children and young people were also positive about the extent to which they were involved in their care and treatment. Eight in 10 (81%) children aged 8 to 11 years felt they were involved in decisions. When asked if they were involved in decisions as much as they wanted to be, 87% young people aged 12 to 15 years said they were.

Furthermore, nearly 9 in 10 (88%) of those aged 8 to 15 years said they or their parents were told who to talk to if they were worried about anything when they got home. This included children and young people being told directly (53%) and parents or carers being told on their behalf (35%).

A high proportion (95%) of parents and carers said they were ‘always’ able to be with their child as much as they wanted, and 74% felt that, as parents and carers, they were ‘always’ treated with dignity and respect.

Eight in 10 (81%) parents and carers of children aged 0 to 15 years said that staff had ‘definitely’ provided information about their child’s care and treatment in a way they could understand and 92% said that staff had agreed a plan for their child’s care with them.

While many responses reflected a positive experience, the survey also identified some areas where NHS trusts could improve and areas where there was inequity of experience (or poorer experience) for some groups of children and young people.

More than half (59%) of parents and carers surveyed had raised a concern about their child’s care or treatment, but only 62% of that group felt those concerns were ‘definitely’ taken seriously. Twenty-eight per cent felt their concerns were taken seriously ‘to some extent’ and 10% said they were not taken seriously.

A third (32%) of parents and carers said staff took their child’s existing needs (such as language support or physical adaptations) into account ‘to some extent’ (24%) or ‘not at all’ (8%). Additionally, 28% said staff were only ‘sometimes’ aware of their child's medical history, and 12% said staff did not seem aware of their child’s medical history at all.

Most children and young people (82%) spent time in a waiting area while in hospital. Of these, almost 4 in 10 were not always able to get help if they needed it while waiting (30% were ‘sometimes’ able to get help, 7% were not able to get help).

There were also some notable differences in experiences reported by autistic children and young people and those with a disability or a mental health condition when compared to other groups.

For parents and carers of disabled children, only 58% said staff ‘definitely’ took their child’s existing individual needs into account, compared with 75% of parents and carers whose children were not disabled.

Autistic children and young people were more likely to feel staff didn’t always communicate with them in a way they understood or listen to their fears or worries. Similarly, children and young people with a mental health condition reported worse experiences in a number of areas, including how well they were looked after overall and on staff listening to what they had to say. Parents and carers of children with a mental health condition were less likely to say they, as the parent or carer, were treated with dignity and respect.

Children admitted in an emergency, rather than planned attendance, reported worse experiences in almost every area of care. Experiences were also worse among younger children aged 0 to 7 years, better among children aged 8 to 11 years, and mixed among young people aged 12 to 15 years.

Aidan Fowler, CQC’s Interim Chief Inspector or Healthcare, said:

Overall the NHS should be pleased with the results of the 2024 survey which show the majority of children and young people were happy with their care. This reflects the hard work and dedication of hospital staff delivering vital healthcare services for young people across the country.

However, the survey does show some areas where children and their parents and carers reported room for improvement – particularly in cases where children had a mental health condition and for autistic or disabled children. It’s crucial that there is equity of experience for all and for existing needs such as language support or physical adaptations to be fully met.

This year’s findings also indicate that more can be done to ensure parents are taken seriously when they raise any concerns. All hospitals should be putting patients and their families at the heart of their care and ensuring that their voices, concerns, and observations are listened to and acted on – something that is recognised in the roll out of Matha’s Rule. The ongoing Martha’s Rule pilot work is already giving patients and families a much stronger voice and we hope it will continue to support improved patient safety going forward.

I’d urge hospital trusts to examine the results of this survey, together with our inspection reports to help them identify any changes they can make to ensure all children and young people receive the best quality of care every time.

The survey findings have been shared with providers to review their individual results and take steps to address any areas where improvements are needed. CQC will continue to use the findings as part of its wider monitoring of the quality of children and young people’s services and to plan and target its inspections.

While this is the fifth survey of its kind, it is not possible to compare the survey findings to those from when it was last carried out in 2020 due to changes to the methodology and sampling period.

Related information

• Children and young people's survey 2024
• NHS patient surveys

​About the Care Quality Commission

The Care Quality Commission (CQC) is the independent regulator of health and social care in England.

We make sure health and social care services provide people with safe, effective, compassionate, high-quality care and we encourage care services to improve.

We monitor, inspect and regulate services to make sure they meet fundamental standards of quality and safety and we publish what we find to help people choose care.