NHS Trust plans to cut health visitor numbers by a quarter

Humber NHS Foundation Trust is looking to cut the number of full-time equivalent health visitor posts from 51.3 to 38.6 to help cope with a £500,000 cut in funding.

In November last year the trust successfully won a contract from East Riding of Yorkshire Council to provide an integrated specialist public health nursing service for children.

The new contract starts in April, but a consultation document seen by CYP Now reveals that the trust will receive £3.5m a year, down on the previous £4m a year.

As well as a reduction in health visitor roles, a teaching role within the service could be axed. Staff are currently being consulted on the changes, which the consultation document concedes could increase the risk of staff sickness and low morale.

The plans have been criticised by Unite regional officer Malcolm Hancock who says it would be a "totally self-defeating move, which will harm children's health and end up costing the trust more in the long run because of reductions in preventative health measures".

He added: "Over the course of a year health visitors and school nurses working for Humber NHS Foundation Trust help thousands of families throughout the area.
 
"Because of the trust's deep cuts, this support and specialist help for families in greater need will be reduced alongside support for issues like domestic violence and safeguarding.
 
"Coming at a time when child health in the UK is falling behind many other European countries, we would urge the trust to think again and ditch its plans to slash this vital service."

A trust spokesman said: "Although the reduced budget necessitates a different model of care, the trust is not expecting redundancies and will do whatever it can to prevent them."

"The trust's proposed service model has been developed to continue providing safe and effective services with the budget available to us, which has been reduced by £500,000.
 
"Our proposed model is currently out for consultation with staff-side organisations and members of staff.
 
"We will also continue to put the communities we serve and our staff at the centre of everything we do to ensure we provide safe and effective services with the funds made available to us."

Last November Nottinghamshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust revealed plans to cut 38 full-time equivalent health visitor posts to save money.

A review is currently taking place, being conducted by Public Health England, into the future of health visitor family checks beyond March 2017, when their mandatory status ends.

Currently councils are legally required to carry out five health checks for children up to the age of two-and-a-half.