What you have told us so far

Public engagement took place earlier this year with families, young people and professionals to ask their views on what was working well within the Starting Well service (which includes the Healthy Child Programme) and to identify any opportunities for improving the service.

Some of the things people felt worked well included:

Good support - people experienced good support from the services received
Helpful and friendly staff – people value the advice given by staff, which enabled them to feel supported and listened to
Classes and activities – people enjoy the different classes and activities at Children’s Centres, in particular Stay and Play, playgroup, baby massage, child weighing sessions, weaning and first aid.

Some of the things people felt could improve the service included:

Communication and promotion – Improve general communication and promotion of the Starting Well brand, being clear about the age range covered, and the services included. Improve the promotion of School Readiness support, ChatHealth, Dads’ support and services offered at Children’s Centres. It was also suggested that a digital platform could be used for appointments and visits.
Support for Dads – Increase the support offer to make dads feel included. Suggestions included having dad only groups and providing support in the evenings and at weekends.
Developmental checks – Ensure children are receiving all the mandatory developmental checks on offer.
Children’s Centre buildings – Extend the opening times of centres to evenings and weekends. Consider the timings of activities and what is available for young people to improve the offer to families. Invest resources to make buildings fit for purpose.
Provision of support – Provide equal support across different areas of the borough.
Better support within schools – including school nurses being more visible and more support for families with primary school children.

Further information on the Starting Well Service engagement and how we have responded to this feedback can be found here: www.cheshirewestandchester.gov.uk/StartingWell.

Some of the things people felt worked well included:

Good support - people experienced good support from the services received
Helpful and friendly staff – people value the advice given by staff, which enabled them to feel supported and listened to
Classes and activities – people enjoy the different classes and activities at Children’s Centres, in particular Stay and Play, playgroup, baby massage, child weighing sessions, weaning and first aid.

Some of the things people felt could improve the service included:

Communication and promotion – Improve general communication and promotion of the Starting Well brand, being clear about the age range covered, and the services included. Improve the promotion of School Readiness support, ChatHealth, Dads’ support and services offered at Children’s Centres. It was also suggested that a digital platform could be used for appointments and visits.
Support for Dads – Increase the support offer to make dads feel included. Suggestions included having dad only groups and providing support in the evenings and at weekends.
Developmental checks – Ensure children are receiving all the mandatory developmental checks on offer.
Children’s Centre buildings – Extend the opening times of centres to evenings and weekends. Consider the timings of activities and what is available for young people to improve the offer to families. Invest resources to make buildings fit for purpose.
Provision of support – Provide equal support across different areas of the borough.
Better support within schools – including school nurses being more visible and more support for families with primary school children.

Further information on the Starting Well Service engagement and how we have responded to this feedback can be found here: www.cheshirewestandchester.gov.uk/StartingWell.