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Health Visiting Service - Worcestershire

  • We are part of the 0-19 Public Health Nursing Service. We work with families to achieve the best health and wellbeing for children from birth to 5 years of age, by identifying health needs and promoting healthy lifestyles.

About the service

We are qualified nurses or midwives with extra specialist training in community public health, child development and health promotion. This means we can support families to prevent illness and promote good health.

We work alongside community nurses and community nursery nurses, who are also highly trained in child development. Together, we deliver parts of the Healthy Child Programme for families with children aged 0–19, and up to 25 for those with special educational needs or disabilities. The Healthy Child Programme provides families with screening, immunisations, and regular health and development reviews, along with advice on health, wellbeing and parenting.

Our service operates Monday to Friday with Core hours of 9-5pm (Telephone advice line 9-1pm) and closed on Bank Holidays. Please note, this is not an emergency service if you are concerned that your child is unwell, please contact your GP, 111 or 999 as necessary.

How to access the service

All families are offered 5 contacts with the Health Visiting Service, from pregnancy until a child starts full time school. These are:

Antenatal visit

Your first contact with us is usually during pregnancy. Your midwife will tell us you’re expecting, and we will get in touch when you are around 28–32 weeks to explain the support we offer.

New birth visit

Once you’re home after the birth, a health visitor will visit you. This usually happens when your baby is 10–14 days old, but it can be up to 21 days. We’ll ask how you, your family and your baby are doing, and give you any advice or support you need with caring for your newborn.

6-8 week review

When your baby is 6–8 weeks old, we’ll visit again to see how things are going. You can talk about anything from the new birth visit, and we’ll chat about activities you can do with your baby and what to expect as they grow.

12-month review

Around your child’s first birthday, we’ll contact you to arrange a development review. Before the appointment, we’ll ask you to complete a short questionnaire. Don’t worry, children develop at their own pace, and your child doesn’t need to be able to do everything on the list.

Integrated 2½‑year review (All About Me @ 2)

When your child is between 2 and 2½ years old, we’ll arrange another development review. In Worcestershire, this is done together with your child’s early years setting (nursery, childminder, preschool or playgroup). Both the health visiting team and the early years staff complete checks to make sure your child’s development is on track and to offer support if needed.

Additional help and support

Outside of these key contacts, there is lots of support available to families. You can access our teams in clinics, groups and through text, email and phone.

Well Child clinics

Our Well Child clinics are open to families with children under the age of 5. We can support you through the early years of your child's life, where necessary, including advice around sleep, development, growth, feeding and toilet training.

To view locations and timetables, visit Well Child clinics in Worcestershire | Children, Young People and Families.

Weighing your child

If your baby is under the age of 2, you can weigh your baby at several locations across Worcestershire, including:

Contact the team

Telephone Advisory Service (TAS)

If your child is 0-19 years old and you need advice on issues such as feeding, development or toileting, behaviour etc, you can contact our Telephone Advisory Service (TAS). The service is managed by members of the Health Visiting Team who can assist you with a variety of different worries and questions you have about your child.
  • Phone: 01905 520 032
  • Service hours: Monday — Friday 9:00am — 1:00pm

Alternatively, you can use our Parentline (Texting service)

  • Text: 07312 263547
  • Service hours: Monday – Friday 9:00am – 5pm

Infant Feeding Team
The Public Health Nursing (PHN) Infant Feeding Team is a dedicated service supporting families to make informed choices about feeding their baby. The team includes an International Board Certified Lactation Consultant (IBCLC). They offer evidence-based information, practical guidance and ongoing support with all aspects of infant feeding.

This includes support with breastfeeding, bottle feeding, combination feeding, expressing and responsive feeding. The team can also provide support if you experience any difficulties or have concerns about feeding.

If you have any questions or would like more information at any stage, the team is available to help. They also provide antenatal “Feeding Your Baby” sessions to support you in preparing for feeding your baby before birth. To contact the Infant Feeding Team:

Outside of office hours, you can also contact the National Breastfeeding Helpline: www.nationalbreastfeedinghelpline.org.uk
     
Smoke Free Homes (SFHs)
Smoke Free Homes (SFHs) offers free, one-to-one, non-judgemental stop smoking support for anyone living in Worcestershire who has a child or young person aged 0–19 years living with them.

Support is usually provided through home visits and includes:

  • Personalised behavioural support
  • Free Nicotine Replacement Therapy (NRT)
  • Free vapes (where appropriate)

Support, including NRT and/or vapes, can be provided for up to 12 weeks.

If you would like to find out more or receive support to quit smoking, please complete the referral form and email it to:
Email: whcnhs.smokefreehomes@nhs.net

Email your local team