More than 1,000 infants not registered at doctors in Mansfield and Ashfield

Doctors have warned children could be at risk of missing out on key vaccinations and checkups because their parents haven’t signed them up with a surgery.

NHS figures show there are 11,029 newborns and children under five registered with GP practices in the NHS Mansfield and Ashfield Clinical Commissioning Group area.

However, the latest ONS figures put the number of children aged four and under in the CCG’s area at 12,067.

This means around 1,040 children are not on a GP’s register.

Professor Russell Viner, president of the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health, has urged parents to ensure their children are registered.

He said: “I find it deeply concerning that so many children appear to be unregistered with a GP, at a time where we are seeing an emergence of preventable and deadly diseases such as the measles, record levels of childhood obesity and its associated conditions.

“Also about 34 per cent of all child deaths in the UK considered avoidable – the vast majority of which are in infancy.”

The NHS offers regular health checks for babies until they are two years old, to monitor their development.

They are also given a personal child health record, known as a red book, in which parents and health professionals keep a log of their vaccinations and measurements.

A spokesman for NHS England in the Midlands said: “Registering your child with a GP as soon as possible after birth will help to give them the best start in life.

“It’s easy to do and local councils give parents the forms they need when they visit to register a birth.

“Pregnant women are assigned a health visitor by their midwives.

“These public health professionals support parents of zero to five-year-olds and will talk to them about the health benefits of registering their child with a GP at the earliest opportunity.”

The figures suggest that. in 2017-18, just 87 per cent of children in England had received both the recommended MMR jabs - which protects against measles, mumps and rubella - by the time they turned five.

Professor Viner added: “Registering a child with a doctor can be life saving or at the very least, life changing.

“It will mean parents get important vaccination and health check reminders, their child’s weight and development monitored and concerns acted upon quickly.

“If required, access to specialist NHS healthcare can be arranged.

“I urge all parents to register their child with their local GP and, if unsure, visit nhs.uk to find out more.”