A LOCAL NHS trust has celebrated 150 years of health visiting.

Cheshire and Wirral Partnership NHS Foundation Trust’s (CWP) health visiting team, including the recently formed Family Nurse Partnership, held an event in Chester celebrating the start of public health nursing in 1862.

The event included presentations looking at the history of health visiting and looking to the future with a podcast of new health visiting developments.

Val Sturgess, community nurse manager at CWP, said: “Over the years there have been a lot of changes to the health visiting service. It is an exciting time as the Government has made a national commitment to invest in the health visiting service.

“The new universal service will deliver the Healthy Child Programme to all children and families. It focuses on a universal preventative service, providing families with a programme of screening, immunisation, health and development reviews, supplemented by advice around health, well-being and parenting.

“Those who require more support will be offered a rapid response from the team when parents/carers need specific help and advice.”