Health Visitors work with parents and carers, offering support from the ante-natal period until the child starts school at five years.
The Service includes a team of Health Visitors, School Nurses, Staff Nurses, Nursery Nurses and Parent Support workers. It provides advice and support on the health and well-being of children and families from 28 weeks gestation through until 19 years of age.
Health Visitors and School Nurses are registered Nurses or Midwives who have chosen to undertake additional training and become Specialist Community Public Health Nurses. They lead the Healthy Child Programme (Pregnancy and the first 5 years of life), providing a universal prevention and early intervention programme, helping parents to support their child in achieving the best start in life and improve outcomes for children and reduce inequalities.
The Service provides a universal preventative service with targeted and specialist elements. As part of the universal element of the Healthy Child Programme, every child and family is offered 5 mandated child development reviews which includes assessment of the child and family’s needs, health promotion advice and support and referral onto other agencies if targeted support/prevention is required.
All Children and families are offered:
- New Birth Visit between 10 – 14 days after delivery
- 3 – 4 month review
- 9 – 12 month growth and development review.
These contacts include an assessment of the child’s growth and development to identify any additional need in order that further support or early intervention/advice/referral to specialist agencies can be made and the service offered can be tailored to the family’s need.
The Ages and Stages Questionnaire (ASQ) is a tool used with parents to aid assessment of a child’s development.
The ASQ covers five main areas:
- Communication
- Gross motor skills
- Fine motor skills
- Problem-solving
- Social-emotional development.
Assessment of speech, language and communication and the promotion of a language rich home learning environment is integral to every mandated contact.
In addition to the mandated contacts families can be signposted to the Service for advice and support.
The Service works in partnership with parents helping them to support their child’s cognitive development, language acquisition and social and emotional development. Supporting the whole family in the transition to parenthood and particularly to support parents mental health. Good maternal and paternal mental health helps to develop a secure attachment between parent and child which will help shape a child’s later emotional, behavioural and intellectual development.
Further information can be found on the MPFT website.
What Can I do?
- Remind/support parents to attend health checks
- Discuss any concerns with Health Visitors
Staffordshire residents
In Staffordshire the Service is called the Families, Health and Wellbeing 0-19 service. The team are available, either via the telephone HUB, one to one appointments, Chat Health or at child health clinic.
Contact Details
- West Hub - 0300 303 3923 (covering Moorlands, Newcastle, Stafford, Stone, Seisdon)
- East Hub - 0300 303 3924 (covering East Staffs, Cannock, Lichfield, Rugeley, Tamworth)
- Chat Health - Text 07520 615722 (answered in office hours only)
Stoke on Trent residents
The team are available, either via the telephone HUB, one to one appointments or at child health clinic. More information can be gained on the Health Visiting Team covering Stoke on Trent
Contact Details