November 2011 Update

Report Due to Ministers in December

The Department of Health School Nurse Development programme is now moving apace and is due to report back to Ministers in December. SAPHNA continue to work tirelessly to represent and inform this crucial work. As part of this we will now form part of the Partnership delivery group which will ensure the governance and oversee the future development and subsequent implementation.

One component of this is the Health Visitor/School Nurse pathway which is being jointly led by Wendy Nicholson, Professional Officer Nursing and Pauline Watts, Professional Officer Health Visiting, Department of Health.

Policy from Department of Health and Department of Education identifies the need for high quality services to improve outcomes in the early years of life and into and throughout school.

The recently published Families in the Foundation Years document emphasises the value of offering children and parents support and advice and information upon entry to and transition into school settings and school-aged years. In addition, the DH national Health visiting Implementation Plan sets out the need for strong partnerships to deliver improvements in the foundation years and beyond.

The pathway will provide a structured approach to addressing the common issues identified by both professions associated with a child and families’ transition from health visiting to the school nursing service. It builds on good practice from the practice and provides a systematic solution focused basis on which to base future local practice.

The draft vision and model will be shared at a key stakeholder’s event in late November. Over 100 key partners including Directors of Public Health, Directors of Children's services, Directors of Nursing, PCT Commissioners, PCT Children's services leads have signed up to attend resulting in a 2nd event being planned in response to demand. We feel that this demonstrates the value of the Programme and the level of continued interest in the profession.

Please visit our website for further updates and opportunities to be involved
Sharon White
Professional officer, SAPHNA