Cheryll Adams to step down as director of the Institute of Health Visiting
Fiona Simpson
Monday, September 21, 2020
Dr Cheryll Adams is to step down as the Institute of Health Visiting’s (IHV) executive director.
Adams, who launched the IHV eight years ago will "step back" in January next year, the organisation said.
She will be temporarily replaced by Alison Morton, the institute’s current director of policy and quality, until the post is advertised during 2021.
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Making the case for health visiting
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The voice of health visiting: Cheryll Adams, executive director, Institute of Health Visiting
Adams will remain with the IHV working part time under the title founding director, initially supporting Morton’s transition of interim director before taking on project work.
She said: “My outstanding hope is that the government will take urgent action to rebuild this amazing profession in England. There are 30 per cent less health visitors working in England today than there were five years ago, unlike in the rest of the UK where the profession is being strengthened. New investment is desperately needed to reverse this.
“Health visitors work quietly and professionally with families to provide a safety net for all babies and pre-school children. They turn children’s lives around, providing them with brighter futures and, in so doing, help to reduce the impact of health inequalities for all of us.”
The IHV was launched in 2012 as a centre of excellence to strengthen the services that health visitors provide to parents, and support health visitors.
Adams was awarded a CBE in 2016 for her services to health visiting.
She added: “It is important to know when to step back and this is the time. I have spent 10 years setting up, launching and running the institute and I couldn’t be prouder of what we have achieved so far. My team is strong and successful, and the institute has become the go-to academic body for health visiting. I have total faith that the institute has a bright future.”