Universal Child Health Service

Part of Knowsley's Local Offer ( )

What is the key purpose of your service and how does it contribute to better outcomes for children and young people with and their families

  • To deliver the Healthy Child programme
  • To support children and families to improve their health outcomes, preventing ill-health and providing services to meet the needs of children and families.

What are the typical activities that you do?

  • Healthy choices such as lifestyle, eating or immunisations
  • Home safety, housing problems, domestic abuse or child abuse
  • Health and wellbeing assessments for all reception, year 6, 9 and 11 children using the Lancaster Model
  • Support for immunisation sessions in school
  • Providing health information, support and advice to children, young people and parents/carers around a variety of health and wellbeing issues (including sleep, diet, weight, headlice, bedwetting, behaviour, emotional wellbeing and drugs and alcohol and onward referrak where appropriate
  • We are also able to prescribe treatment for common childhood ailments
  • Developing healthcare plans for children and young people with ongoing specific health needs
  • Carry out the National Child Measurement Programme
  • Promote emotional and mental wellbeing
  • Safeguarding assessments
  • Looked after children assessments
  • Delivering classroom based health education
  • Healthy relationship advice and support
  • Sexual health and contraceptive services - available in some secondary schools offering relationship and contraception advice, pregnancy testing, emergency contraception (morning after pill), condom distribution and chlamydia / gonorrhoea screening
  • Drugs and alcohol advice and referral to specialist service

Do you have any limitations on the amount of time your service will support a child or young person?

Our universal offer is inclusive of all children/young people up to the age of 19 and up to 25 for children/young people with and their families.  We offer more targetted interventions for a specific period dependent on individual identified needs.  This will be agreed in partnership with yo and your child.

Do you provide any on-going support?

  •  Yes as we are a service from 0-19 

Where are your main locations and do you work across the whole local authority area?

  • The Child Health service is borough wide through Knowsley
  • We have five locality bases.
  • 1 in the North, at St. Chads Centre
  • 2 in the South at Halewood and Whiston Primary Care Resource Centre
  • 2 in the Central are at North Huyton and Manor Farm Primary Care Resource Centres
  • We deliver care in a variety of settings including mainstream and special schoold, alternative education providers, family homes, residential placements and community clicks.


Are there any differences in your offer in different parts of the local authority area?

  • No, we aim to offer parity of service across Knowsley.
  • There may be slight local variances to respond to individual populations but the core offer remains the same.

What types of need and age ranges do you cover?

  • All children from 0-19 and 0-25 for children/young people with
  • All health needs

What are the eligibility criteria to use your service?

  • All families with a child aged 0-5 years and pregnant women resident in the Knowsley area should receive the Healthy Child Programme.
  • The school nursing service will cover all children and young people that attend schools located within Knowsley. This will include special, primary, secondary, free schools and those not in mainstream settings, e.g. Pupil Referral Units. Also children that are educated at home and children attending alternative educational provision.

 Are there any types of disabilities that you do not provide for?

  • No

 
Can I make direct contact or would there need to be a referral from someone else and if so, who?

  • Before your baby is born you will be offered an antenatal visit by your Health Visitor or Family Nurse. This is usually between 28-34 weeks.  We are also notified when a baby is born or on transfer into Knowsley.

Do you charge for the service and if so what are the costs?

  • No charge

Can I use my personal budget to pay for the service or to add to the service?

  • NA

Are there any waiting lists and if so, how long are they?

  • NA 

How are decisions made about who can use your service and who makes them?

  • NA  as a service

How will I know the reasons behind their decisions?

  • NA

How will you help me understand them?

  • NA

Does your service have a complaints policy and where can I see it?

How do you communicate with service users and how are they involved in decision making/planning?  What are your usual methods of seeking the views of service users?

  • Patient satisfaction surveys completed at regular intervals.
  • Action plans developed from feed back gained.
  • Feedback cards available at all bases and staff encourage parents to fill these in with a post box to ensure privacy and openness with responses.
  • Feedback can also comment via our Social Media sites

What leaflets and information do you have?

  • Leaflets regarding Health Visiting and School health services given to all families.
  • Leaflets given regarding health advice e.g. safe sleeping in infancy, NCMP.

How does the service communicate with parent carers whose first language is not English?

  • We would use an interpreting service or Language line

How will I know how well my child or young person is doing?

  • You will be invited to attend appointments so feedback would be by direct communication with the practitoner involved.
  • There may be a meeting held whereby feedback regarding your child's health needs is provided.
  • We would welcome enquiries from parents
  • Letters are sent out regarding certain contacts e.g. National Child Measurement Programme, the Lancaster Model

Do you offer any parent training or learning events?

  • Yes we offer training in partnership with the Children's Centres.  Please contact your named health visitor or school nurse for further information.  You can also find further information on our social media.


Is the building fully wheelchair accessible?

  • Yes. All staff are based in 5 new LIFT buildings which are wheelchair accessible

Have there been improvements in the auditory and visual environment?

  • Yes, buildings have this equipment.

Are there disabled changing and toilet facilities?

  • Yes

Do you have a changing places facility?

  • Yes

What support is there for a child with additional needs in general areas eg waiting rooms?

  • The waiting rooms are spacious and open plan to support a child with additional needs.

How will my child or young person be able to access all of the activities of the service and how will you assist him or her to do so?

  • We will ensure access by assessment of individual need
     

What training and accreditation do the staff supporting children and young people with have or are having?  This should include recent and future planned training and disability awareness. Are there any specialist staff?

  • We have champions within each team
  • Staff have completed training in developing Education Health Care Plans
  • All the staff have had equality and diversity training and a range of mandatory training that is updated according to the relevant policies on a regular basis

Do any other services work closely with yours?

  • We work closely with the Children's Community Nursing team
  • We work closely with the Paediatric Therapies and Speech and Language Therapy

Who can I contact for further information?

Who would be my first point of contact if I want to discuss something about my child/young person?

  • Your named health visitor or school nurse or contact the 0-19 team at your local clinic

Who else has a role in my child’s/young person support?

  • Dependant on needs

Who can I talk to if I am worried?

  • Your named health visitor or school nurse or the 0-19 team at your local clinic

Who should I contact if I am considering whether child/young person would benefit from the service?

  • NA as we are a universal service but as above if specific enquiries