Daily roundup 30 September: GP services, DfE priorities, and young carers

Patients will be able to see their doctor on Saturdays and Sundays under plans to be set out by the Conservatives. A pledge to force GPs to open their surgeries seven days a week within five years is part of a wider package of measures to improve access to family doctors. Others could include 12-hour surgery opening, consultations and prescriptions by email and the right to register at more than one practice, reports the Times.

The Early Intervention Foundation has welcomed the government’s announcement that the Department for Education is to get a fifth priority to create “well rounded” children. Foundation chief executive Carey Oppenheim said the move will expand the DfE’s focus beyond academic standards to the formation of well-rounded children. “By improving children’s communication skills, mental health and their ability to manage their own behaviour, we can help children thrive – helping them to learn, enjoy better future relationships and job prospects,” she added.

Carers Trust is calling on the government to extend the pupil premium to young carers and help close the gap between them and their peers. It says young carers must be identified early and supported to fulfil their potential, and that funding schools through the pupil premium is the best way to achieve this. On average young carers will miss half a day of school each fortnight as a result of their caring role, and are twice as likely to be not in education, employment or training at 18.

Tens of thousands of young children are suffering from rotting teeth caused by drinking fruit juice and squash, a major study has revealed. As many as one in eight children have suffered tooth decay by the age of three – although in some parts of England the rates are as high as a third. Dentists say the problem is often caused by well-meaning parents giving toddlers sugar-laden drinks, reports the Mail.?