We welcome abstracts that align with the conference theme, “The Future is Now: Shaping Better Outcomes Together”, and demonstrate how health visiting, family public health services and integrated approaches are helping to reduce health inequalities and improve outcomes for babies, children and families.  

Submissions may focus on prevention and early intervention across the preconception period, pregnancy and early childhood (0-5 years) and are welcomed from practitioners, researchers, educators and multidisciplinary teams. 

We are particularly interested in work that demonstrates: 

• Innovation, research or evidence-based practice. 
• Quality improvement, service development or evaluation (across the scope of health visiting and integrated services). 
• Collaborative and integrated approaches to care. 
• Measurable impact on the health and wellbeing of babies, children and families. 
• Learning that can be transferred and applied across health visiting and integrated services, organisations or settings. 
• Advancing digital innovation improves care, while keeping babies’ and children’s needs and safety considerations at the centre. 

Submissions from outside the UK will be considered where there is clear relevance and transferable learning for UK practice. 

If you are  resubmitting work presented in previous years, please highlight the progress, developments or outcomes achieved since your last submission.

* If your organisation is paying for your ticket, please ensure you have their approval prior to submitting your abstract. 

Submissions:
The abstract submission deadline is 6 November 2026. 

Notifications:
After an iHV peer-review process, participants will be informed by 11 December 2026 of acceptance of abstracts with a presentation category allocated. 

Word limits are provided within each section of the online submission form.

Submit your abstract here

Please also refer to our FAQs for guidance and support throughout the submission process. 

All abstracts will be peer reviewed by the iHV Conference Panel through a two-stage assessment process. 

Stage 1: Initial Review 

Submissions will be assessed against the following criteria: 

• Relevance: Aligns with conference themes of improving outcomes for babies, children and families, strengthening health visiting, and has relevance across the UK. 
• Presentation: Clearly written in English, free from unnecessary jargon, uses full terminology where abbreviations are introduced, meets the word limit, and includes current references. 
• Conflict of Interest: Abstracts submitted primarily to promote a commercial product or service will not be accepted. Organisations interested in partnership opportunities are invited to contact us separately. 

Stage 2: Full Review 

Abstracts that meet the Stage 1 criteria will be assessed on: 

• Innovation: Demonstrates originality and addresses gaps in research or practice. 
• Transferability: Clearly describes the initiative or research and its potential application in other settings. 
• Engagement: Demonstrates meaningful involvement of the target population, including consultation or co-production where appropriate. 
• Evidence Base: Draws on research, best practice, quality improvement methodologies, and/or relevant standards. 
• Impact: Demonstrates positive outcomes for babies, children and families, and/or the health visiting workforce. 
• Leadership: Shows health visiting leadership and dissemination of learning to support wider improvement.
• Professional Development: Enhances the knowledge, skills and capabilities of health visitors, aligned with the NMC SCPHN Standards (2022). 
• Health Equity: Supports inclusive practice and improved outcomes for groups at greater risk of health inequalities. 

There is no fee to submit an abstract. 

If your abstract is accepted, the presenting author must attend the conference in person and register at the applicable discounted speaker rate. Successful presenters will receive an exclusive 25% discount on their conference registration. 

To qualify for the discounted speaker rate, the conference booking form must be completed by 22 January 2027, with payment received by 19 February 2027. Please note that presenters are responsible for their own travel and accommodation costs

Conference registration is not yet open, but please save the date: 30 June 2027 at King’s House Conference Centre, Manchester 📍 

All applicants will receive feedback from the review panel. If you would like to discuss your feedback further, please contact [email protected]. 

Our Call for Abstracts typically attracts a high number of submissions, while presentation opportunities are limited. Decisions are based on both review scores and the need to create a balanced conference programme. As a result, some high-quality submissions may not be selected for an oral presentation. 

Where appropriate, we may contact you about alternative opportunities to share your work, such as joining a reserve speaker list, presenting a poster in the exhibition hall, or contributing to other iHV activities and publications. 

If your abstract is not selected on this occasion, we warmly encourage you to attend the conference as a delegate and to consider submitting your work for future events. 

We look forward to learning about your research, innovations, and contributions to practice. If you have any questions, please contact [email protected].