Contact Hub makes it easier for families to contact young people’s health services in Cheshire East

This week marks the official launch of the innovative Contact Hub in Cheshire East. The Contact Hub makes it easier for families to contact health services for local children and young people.

Parents and carers can now access a range of services via one dedicated telephone - 0300 123 4058, as well as a wealth of information, support and resources via the Contact Hub’s website:

www.wchc.nhs.uk /children

Services within the hub include; Infant feeding, health visiting, school nursing, immunisations and Family Nurse Partnership (FNP).

The Contact Hub provides parents, carers and young people with:

• Telephone advice line and signposting to local services
• Dedicated support from 0-19+ Services
• Peer support, where people with similar health experiences support each other to better understand the conditions and aid recovery or self-management.
• Referrals into other local services
• Instant access to information, resources and guidance via the dedicated website and social media pages - @0219HVHubCE and @schoolnursesCE
• Support groups
• Access to ChatHealth - confidential text messaging service for 11-19 year olds

The dedicated children and young people’s website is a key element of the Contact Hub. With the click of a button, parents, carers, and young people can access a range of local and tailored support, information, and advice, including videos, resources - ranging from baby packs, weaning and school readiness support to wellbeing and resilience tools and vaccination schedules, as well access to local online support groups.

To search for a particular service people can either use the A-Z service directory or the search function. Young people can also complete an online feedback form about their experiences about the services they have received. Families can access support, advice, and information by visiting:

www.wchc.nhs.uk/children

Jo Gillman, 0-19+ Service Lead, said; “Our single point of access model makes it easier for families and health professionals to contact and receive support from our 0-19+ Services in Cheshire East. It offers a person-centred approach with parents and carers only telling their story once, which reduces stress and anxiety for many people.

The Contact Hub is a true reflection of the excellent work that already goes on in Cheshire East to support children, young people, and their families.”

Councillor Kathryn Flavell, lead member for children and families at Cheshire East Council, said: “Together with our partners we work hard to ensure that children and young people are healthy and make positive choices and that children and families get the right support at the right time from the right people.

“I welcome this new hub that makes it easier to access health services for parents, children and young people - supporting all children to have the best start in life and helping to reduce health inequalities across the borough.”

This new way of working will help improve the current and future health and wellbeing of children and young people, help reduce health inequalities, respond to local need, and provide universal and targeted support as required.