One of the biggest challenges facing the health visiting profession is that many people do not know who health visitors are, or what their role entails. How can we expect the Government to invest in health visiting if this is not clear?
All families in England should receive five mandated universal health visiting contacts, from pregnancy to when their child starts school . Yet, these contacts are just a small fraction of health visitors’ work. Health visitors are a vital part of the ‘health’ workforce, providing much more intensive support for families experiencing some of the most challenging circumstances for a multitude reasons – however, this work is mostly hidden from sight and rarely gets media attention. As a result, this infrastructure of support that health visitors provide is vulnerable to service cuts which are ongoing.
Our aim was to make the work of the health visitor more visible. Last week, as part of the iHV Spending Review submission, we launched two new infographics setting out “Who are health visitors and what do they do?” and “It’s time to invest in health visiting because…”.
iHV Infographic – Who are health visitors and what do they do?
iHV Infographic – It’s time to invest in health visiting because…
The infographics showcase the multitude of ways that health visitors support thousands of families every week, providing a vital infrastructure of support. When sufficiently resourced, the health visiting service provides an important part of the solution for multiple cross-government department priorities for children, which we have set out in our Spending Review.
Download and use these infographics to shine a spotlight on the work of health visitors locally and nationally.
Public services are flooded with increasing need. It’s time to #InvestInHealthVisiting – join the campaign to #TurnOffTheTaps
Calling all health visitors:
We invite you to find your inner warrior and share your stories on social media. How have you made a difference to babies, children and families? Support the #TurnOffTheTaps campaign and raise the profile of health visiting so every baby can get the best start in life. Together we are stronger. #InvestInHealthVisiting
