School Nurses offer a service to pupils who attend the 109 schools in Wolverhampton that are State Funded, Academies, Free Schools, Special Schools and other educational establishments including Pupil Referral Units, Re-Entry sites, Educated at Home and the Youth Offending Team (YOT).
The Service has to be flexible and delivered in the most appropriate setting dependent on the needs of the child / young person including schools, homes, youth offending service, primary care and other community based settings. There is some provision of service available all year round at times to suit service users and cover case conferences etc.
The School Nursing Service
The School Nursing Service exists to provide skilled evidence based care and support to all children and young people between 4.5 years and 19 years of age and their families who attend schools in Wolverhampton.
Aims
- To maintain the physical, social and emotional health of all school aged children to enable them to reach and maintain their full potential and maximise on the educational opportunities available.
- To encourage healthier lifestyles in the school population.
Objectives
- To carry out a selective health surveillance programme for reception and year 6 pupils and participate in the National Child Measurement Programme (NCMP).
- To identify health needs and offer an appropriate response to those needs.
- To negotiate and facilitate health promotion within the school and surrounding community in line with local and national targets.
- To liaise with parents/carers and school on health issues relating to the school age child.
- To support the school aged child and their family whenever possible, at a time of need.
- To identify those children who are at risk of being harmed and act accordingly in line with safeguarding policy.
- Safeguarding children and young people (in accordance with section 11 of the Children Act)
- To liaise with other professionals involved in working with children and their families.
- To support education staff when a child has medical needs in school. This is driven by the Healthy Child Programme (2009) and Getting it Right for Children, Young People and Families (2012).
Responsibilities
Each team of School Nurses offers a service to children, parents and school staff within a geographical area in the city. The team is responsible for the assessment of a child’s health needs in specified year groups or by individual request, the development and evaluation of programmes of care for children and young people within their area. They are responsible to their line manager for management/clinical issues.
The School Nurse is a Registered General Nurse who has additional training and experience in child development and specialist areas.
School Nurses can be accessed either at school or their base.
School Nursing Teams
- Ashmore Park Health Centre: (01902) 444115/ 4116
- Bilston Health Centre: (01902) 444418/ 444419
- Bushbury Health Centre: (01902) 444511
- Gem Centre: (01902) 444161/ 444700
- Pendeford Health Centre: (01902) 444531/ 575235
- Phoenix Health Centre: (01902) 444164/ 444165
- Whitmore Reans Health Centre: (01902) 444789/ 446646
- Youth Offending Team, Beckminster House: (01902) 553722
Availability
The School Nursing Service is provided on a Monday to Friday 08.30am - 5pm term time. There are a few school nurses who do work full time. During school holidays please contact the Gem Centre.
Referral Criteria are taken from a:
- Child
- parent/family/carer
- member of school staff
- health professional
Service Description
- Selective School Entry Health Assessments including NCMP (4.5-5yrs)
- Selective Health Surveillance Year 6 including NCMP (10 – 11 years)
- Safeguarding – identify those children at risk of being harmed either physically or emotionally and act accordingly in line with safeguarding policies and procedures.
- Early Help Assessments
- Looked After Children assessments and termly reviews in schools.
- Support for pupils who do not attend mainstream schools and special schools
- Health Support for young people attending the Youth Offending team
- Proactively attempt to contact children and young people who are ‘No Trace’.
- Health Education with an individual or in a classroom. Teaching sessions include smoking, drug and alcohol misuse and supporting the delivery of the puberty pack and spiral curriculum.
- Drop ins in secondary schools including sexual health drop ins.
- Participate in Health Promotion Campaigns e.g. smoking cessation drug and alcohol misuse, accident prevention and oral health etc.
- Training and regularly updating members of staff in school with regard to key health issues e.g. Asthma/Epipen etc.
- Support with the implementation and evaluation of health care plans in education settings
- New to Area assessments
- Support to children and young people and their parents/carers
- Home visits
- Working Together Agreements
- Information and advice on specific issues - e.g. enuresis, asthma etc.
- Multi agency working/liaison and referral to other agencies
- Record keeping in line with record keeping policy
Discharge
Children and young people remain with the school nursing service until they leave school.
Expected Outcomes Including Improving Prevention
- The overall outcomes of this service are that abnormalities will be identified at the earliest possible age, that good health will be maintained and ill health will be prevented where at all possible.
- Mortality and morbidity rates will be reduced.
- Positive attitudes to health will be improved.
- In line with the Healthy Child Programme, healthier lifestyles will be improved.
- Improved access to services by minority groups.
- Children will be involved in the decision making process regarding their health.
- Care will be in a safe effective and appropriate setting at home or in the community where at all possible.
- Parents/carers will be more confident to manage their child (rens) health care.
Compliments/Complaints
Compliments and complaints can be made to the School Nurse, School Nurse Manager or PALS.
All complaints are investigated and the outcome shared with the complainant. There is the opportunity to appeal any decisions made.
Communication with Service Users
The views of children and young people and parents/carers are taken during drop in sessions and when discharged from a clinic.
There are also citywide surveys undertaken on young people by the local Authority which includes views on the School Nursing Service.
There is an interpreter service available for staff to communicate with people whose first language is not English.
Review of the Service
Quarterly reports are submitted to Commissioners and a number of audits are undertaken. There is an annual service report submitted each August.