Connect For Health

Updated 9 December 2021

We carried out this inspection of Compass Connect for Health in line with our inspection methodology. The service was taken over by Compass in 2015. This was the first time the service had been inspected.

Connect for Health is a school nurse-led service that supports children, young people and their families in Warwickshire. The service deliver key elements of the National Healthy Child Programme. This programme is to identify and meet the health and wellbeing needs of the school-age population.

The service was for all school-aged children, aged five to 19, or up to 25 for individuals with special educational needs and disability (SEND), and their parents/carers, regardless of whether they attend a mainstream school.

The service provided the following regulated activity:

• Treatment of disease, disorder or injury.

The service is commissioned by Public Health Warwickshire and works to deliver the on outcomes set by Warwickshire County Council: Keeping safe, improving lifestyles, maximising learning and achievement, seamless transition and preparation for adulthood, resilience and emotional wellbeing and supporting complex and additional health and wellbeing needs.

The service was provided from three bases across the county, Stratford -Upon-Avon, Rugby and Caldecote. The service provided the following:

• Health Needs Assessments for school aged children in reception, year six and year nine.
• The National Child Measurement programme.
• Public health campaigns through providing advice and information.
• ‘Change makers’ healthy lifestyle programme.
• Holistic assessments and health reviews of children in care.
• Developed Health Care plans where needed, provided training for teaching staff to support children and young people with specific health needs and continence workshops.
• A text support service called ‘ChatHealth.’
• Advice, guidance and support for young carers.
• Completed Health visitor handovers for children starting school who needed this.
• Support and interventions for families and carers of children and young people with specific issues and those families and carers of children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities.
• Sign posting to other services where this was required.

The service did not supply, keep or manage medicines.

What people who use the service say

Families of children and young people told they and their child they were well supported. They described responsive, compassionate and approachable staff. They said the service communicated with them effectively and offered the right kind of support. They were all positive about the service that they and their child received. They gave examples of how the service had supported them to engage with other services and professionals where required. They were happy that the service gave them an opportunity to provide feedback.

Professionals who worked with the service told us they were happy with the service. They described positive professional relationships with the staff at the service. They described them as being quick to resolve problems and improve and being skilled communicators. They described the service being delivered in a timely and appropriate way that supported children, young people and their families and kept them safe.

Local commissioners had a high level of confidence in the service and told us there were no performance issues. They told us the provider provided them with high quality detailed data about their activity. They described the service as innovative; with staff who were keen to find solutions and improve. They spoke of the leadership as open and honest. They reported that feedback from service users and other stakeholders was positive.

Updated 9 December 2021

This was the first time we had inspected this service. We rated it as good because:

• The service had enough staff to care for children and young people and keep them safe. Staff had training in key skills, understood how to protect children, young people and their families from abuse, and managed safety well. The service controlled infection risk well. Staff assessed risks to children and young people, acted on them and kept good care records. The service managed safety incidents well and learned lessons from them. Staff collected safety information and used it to improve the service.
• Staff provided effective care and treatment. Managers monitored the effectiveness of the service and made sure staff were competent. Staff worked well together for the benefit of children, young people and their families, advised them on how to lead healthier lives, supported them to make decisions about their care, and had access to good information.
• Staff treated children, young people and their families with compassion and kindness, respected their privacy and dignity, took account of their individual needs, and helped them understand their conditions. They provided emotional support to children and young people, families and carers.
• The service planned care to meet the needs of local people, took account of children and young people’s individual needs, and made it easy for people to give feedback. People could access the service when they needed it and did not have to wait too long for treatment.
• Leaders ran services well using reliable information systems and supported staff to develop their skills. Staff understood the service’s vision and values, and how to apply them in their work. Staff felt respected, supported and valued. They were focused on the needs of children and young people receiving care. Staff were clear about their roles and accountabilities. The service engaged well with children, young people and families to manage services and all staff were committed to improving services continually.

Updated 9 December 2021

Please see summary above