10 - Signposting and referrals

How did you provide participants and their families with information, signposting or referrals to other services and support?

Staffordshire HAF pages are held centrally on Staffordshire Connects. 

Information includes:

• food banks
• healthy start
• more help feeding a family - helpful resources to provide healthy nutritious food on a budget
• physical activity guidance including the benefits of physically active
• household support fund information and links
• welfare and health support
• mental health and wellbeing
• dental and oral health

In addition providers are supplied with information packs with containing details of support agencies, voluntary groups, food banks and the like to help sign post if required.

A number of providers are from the voluntary sector and have a good working knowledge of what's available for families, whilst others work with schools and are based in the local community and have a working knowledge of support resources.

We ask that providers keep referral data to share with the HAF team so we can monitor any particular issues.

Our colleagues across the County Council are sent requests for any campaigns or information they wish to display at HAF clubs. The clubs were very successful in the supporting our Covid testing campaign, issuing free Covid testing kits to families.

The Summer Reading Challenge was a real success, encouraging families to use their local library.

Which services did you signpost?

Services families were signposted to:

• CAB
• Uniform exchange
• Food banks
• Credit union
• Claiming food vouchers
• Family hubs
• Libraries
• Health services
• Information for parents on where to find help to diagnose children showing ADHD/Autism characteristics. Signposting here was vital as the provider also supported the parents on how to approach school and allay some of their fears misconceptions.