The Conservative pledge to increase the number of health visitors by 4,200 represents one of the party's longest-standing promises. But reforming a diminishing workforce that has been a victim to sharply increasing caseloads may also prove to be one of its greatest challenges.
Shadow families minister Maria Miller last week proposed her party would focus on enticing qualified professionals back to practise and simplify the career path from midwifery to health visiting.
But Sarah Cowley, professor of community practice development at King's College London, believes that while there are some professionals who may be willing to return to practise, the means of doing so are ever decreasing.
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