What the Autumn Budget means for the building blocks of health

This year’s Autumn Budget wasn’t billed as a ‘health budget’ – but it touches almost every part of life that shapes our health. From how much money we have in our pockets to the quality of homes we live in, these decisions ripple across what builds good health.

Here’s what it all means for some of the building blocks of health, and what our members and supporters told us as they reflected on the announcements. 

The money in our pockets 

The headline moment was the decision to scrap the two-child limit in Universal Credit – expected to lift 450,000 children out of poverty. As the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health put it: “this policy has directly harmed the health and wellbeing of children and their families by keeping them trapped in poverty.” Trussell celebrated the change, saying it will “pull 470,000 children out of severe hunger and hardship by 2027 and ease pressure on food banks throughout the UK.” 

It’s a huge step, but not the whole story. The Health Foundation and Impact on Urban Health reminded us that this needs to be backed up by the upcoming child poverty strategy – one that tackles the root causes, lowers the cost of essentials, and invests in early years support. 

Alongside this, there are measures to ease day-to-day pressures, like reducing energy bills by £150 a year, and a rise in the National Minimum Wage. All of these, as Citizens Advice said, will “help households across the country keep the lights on.”  

But some of our coalition, like Barnardo’s, were clear that these gains sit awkwardly alongside the benefit cap, which still limits how much support families can receive. And National Energy Action warn that “until the government’s Warm Homes Plan is released, there now isn’t a plan for how to end fuel poverty.” 

Health-focused measures also drew strong support. The Food Foundation welcomed moves like strengthening the soft drinks levy and extending support through school food and Healthy Start, calling them vital for reducing child poverty and improving children’s health. As Impact on Urban Health put it, “this move gives them the opportunity to change to healthier recipes and help create a level playing field for businesses.” 

And that extra money raised through the levy underlines a bigger point running through the Budget – that improving children’s health and easing poverty aren’t separate goals; they go hand in hand. 

Where we live 

Our homes are one of the strongest foundations for good health. Members welcomed plans for long-term rent reform – but it’s no substitute for addressing the affordability and quality of homes in the private rented sector. 

Right now, less than 3% of homes listed to privately rent across the UK are affordable for people on housing benefits.

Crisis warned that freezing housing benefit leaves low-income households trapped: “What this Budget doesn’t do is help hundreds of thousands of households who are homeless or at risk… keeping housing benefit frozen will directly lead to a rise in homelessness.” 

Shelter echoed the call: “Housing benefit is meant to help struggling families afford a roof over their heads, but it’s too far out of sync with the real cost of renting. To help children out of temporary accommodation, government must unfreeze local housing allowance.” 

How we work

With the minimum wage rising to £12.71, The Health Foundation noted that this will offer meaningful support low paid care workers, while the Trades Union Congress stressed that “taking action to make work pay will make a real difference to people struggling to get by”. The Budget also promised guaranteed job opportunities for unemployed young people – including fully funding apprenticeship training for under-25s in small and medium-sized businesses – more support for employers, and a rebalancing of Universal Credit rates so that it doesn’t pay to be off sick rather than in work. 

But members were cautious. The Institute for Employment Studies stated: “Nearly a million 16–24-year-olds are out of work and not in any form of education or training… the government should aim to ensure that every young person can access the support they need.” 

The message was clear: work supports health when it’s secure, fair and flexible. 

So, does this Budget strengthen access to the building blocks of health?  

In many ways, yes. Ending the two–child limit, expanding support for children, raising wages and investing in getting people in, or back into, the workforce all points in a positive direction. These are real wins for the conditions that allow people to live healthy lives. 

But there are still many gaps. As the Centre for Mental Health reminded us: “We are disappointed that mental health was completely absent from the Chancellor’s speech today, undermining commitments to treat it with the same urgency as physical health.” 

The Budget does show a willingness to rebuild the building blocks of good health. The challenge now is to turn these first steps into lasting change – with sustained ambition, long–term investment, and a continued focus on the things that make good health possible for everyone. That means going further by committing to a cross-government health inequalities strategy that tackles the roots of poor health across the building blocks to health – from housing to education and employment. Only with this coordinated, whole-government approach can we create the conditions for good health.