Residents in North Tyneside have ‘access to high quality health information and advice’ a report by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) has found.
North Tyneside Council’s 0-19 Children’s Public Health Service went under the spotlight during a rigorous inspection in November 2022.
Inspectors spent time speaking to service users and support groups, attending home visits and shadowing council colleagues and dedicated partners.
In the report, the service is praised for all aspects of its work and support meaning it has received an overall ‘good’ rating.
Inspectors said the service had ‘imaginative approaches to person-centred care’ and that staff were ‘consistent in supporting people to live healthier lives’.
The commitment and dedication of those working in the service is frequently highlighted as staff are praised for treating children, young people, and their families with ‘compassion and kindness’ and working constantly to recognise that ‘social and emotional needs’ are ‘just as important as their physical needs’.
They’re described as ‘compassionate, inclusive and effective’ with a ‘commitment to system-wide collaboration and improvement’.
There’s more reason for celebration too, as a further three areas of ‘outstanding’ practice were highlighted.
Breastfeeding and support for parent infant relationships featured as an outstanding practice, with the service’s recent UNICEF Gold Accreditation in this area praised by inspectors.
The innovative ‘Dad Pad’ app, which provides fathers with free access to online resources and advice on being a new parent, was identified as another example of outstanding practice. The service plans to expand this for co-parents including LGBTQ+ non-birthing parents in 2024.
Inspectors noted the passion of the service is driven by ‘highly visible’ leaders who make staff feel ‘respected, supported and proud to work for the service’, leading to this area being rated ‘outstanding’.
Dame Norma Redfearn DBE, Elected Mayor of North Tyneside Council, said: “I want every child in our Borough to have the best start in life, to live healthy and happy lives and realise their potential.
“Having the right support for families in our borough through every step of their journey is one of our biggest priorities and is something I’ve always been extremely passionate about. Children and parents deserve the opportunity to develop, thrive and grow and I am delighted that this report highlights the fantastic work that our 0-19 service does for our residents.
“From our health visitors helping to give babies the best possible start to their lives through to our teams working in our fantastic family hubs, the report showcases the incredible commitment we have for our families.
“The CQC report is a testament to this hard work, passion and commitment of our colleagues and partners. We’re ambitious for the future and will not take our foot off the peddle, we will always work to strengthen our service further by taking on board the feedback from inspectors to help us shape our services now and for future generations.”
The full report is available here.