Health visitors face rising stress levels

A survey by the union Unite found just over half of health visitors felt their morale was poor. Three quarters said they knew colleagues who had taken time off from work because ofwork-related stress and a similar number said they had experienced increased stress themselves.

It also found nearly a third of health visitors were unable to respond to the needs of the most vulnerable children on their caseload.

Cheryll Adams, Unite's acting lead professional officer, said: "The statistics are appalling and this needs to be addressed really quickly. Health visitors are experiencing extreme changes in their workloads which must be making it incredibly difficult to deliver that role."

Adams said she wanted to see more health visitors employed and much closer working between the Department for Children, Schools and Families and the Department of Health.