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Health visitor

Alternative titles for this job include

Health visitors work with families in their own homes to promote healthy lifestyles and prevent illness.

Average salary (a year)

£31,365 Starter

to

£44,503 Experienced

Typical hours (a week)

38 to 40 a week

You could work

evenings on a rota

How to become a health visitor

You can get into this job through:

  • working towards this role

Work

You can apply for training if you're a registered nurse or midwife. Any branch of nursing is acceptable.

You'll complete a course in Specialist Community Public Health Nursing - Health Visiting, approved by the Nursing & Midwifery Council.

Courses can be full time or part time and last between 1 and 2 years.

More Information

Registration

Further information

You'll find more details about how to become a health visitor from Health Careers.

What it takes

Skills and knowledge

You'll need:

  • customer service skills
  • the ability to work well with others
  • the ability to use your initiative
  • to be flexible and open to change
  • sensitivity and understanding
  • to enjoy working with other people
  • the ability to come up with new ways of doing things
  • knowledge of teaching and the ability to design courses
  • to be able to carry out basic tasks on a computer or hand-held device

Restrictions and Requirements

You'll need to:

What you'll do

Day-to-day tasks

As part of your day-to-day duties, you could:

  • give advice to new parents on feeding babies, hygiene, safety and sleeping
  • support parents with their children’s development needs
  • coordinate child immunisation programmes
  • organise special clinics or drop-in centres
  • support children with special needs
  • advise on how to reduce the risk of accident and injury
  • work closely with social services and other organisations to safeguard and protect children

Working environment

You could work at a client's home, at a health centre or at a GP practice.

Your working environment may be physically and emotionally demanding and you'll travel often.

Career path and progression

With experience, you could progress to team manager, community matron or a management role in another department of the NHS.

You could also go into nurse education and training.

Current opportunities

Apprenticeships In England

We can't find any apprenticeship vacancies in England for a health visitor right now.

The Find an apprenticeship service can help you with your search, send alerts when new apprenticeships become available and has advice on how to apply.

Courses In England

Access to Higher Education Diploma (Nursing)

  • Provider: EALING, HAMMERSMITH & WEST LONDON COLLEGE
  • Start date: 14 September 2021
  • Location: London

Access to HE Diploma in Nursing and Midwifery

  • Provider: BROCKENHURST COLLEGE
  • Start date: 06 September 2021
  • Location: BROCKENHURST
Find courses near you

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Call 0800 100 900 or use webchat

  • 8am - 8pm Monday - Friday
  • 10am - 5pm Saturday

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