The Living Well Children and Families Service

This service is for children and young people aged 2-19 who are above a healthy weight. They have friendly, trained advisors who will work with parents of children under the age of 13, or more directly with children aged 13 or over. The team is supported by a registered mental health nurse and a dietitian.

Contact Details:

Tel: 01274 435 660

E-Mail The Service

What the service offers:

We take a ‘Health First’ approach which means that we focus on children’s physical health and emotional wellbeing first, and how to improve it. We understand that for families, health is affected by many things that they can’t always control, and that they can feel flooded by unhealthy food options and advertising. Our aim is to help families to build up defences by focusing on healthy behaviours and daily habits that they can control, to increase the flow of healthy food onto children’s plates, and to open up new channels for active living.

The service will encourage you and your family to take positive steps which are right for you
They will support you to identify changes that will help your whole family work towards goals including eating well, moving well, sleeping well and feeling mentally well

The service can guide and support families to make small lifestyle changes that help to improve the health and wellbeing of the whole family
The service can see families at home, or if preferred meet at a local community centre, family hub or school across the district

Some of the topics advisors can explore with you as a family:

The Eatwell Guide
Portion sizes
Physical activity
Sleep
Understanding food labels

To join the programme you need to:

Live in the Bradford district
Have, or be, a child aged between 2-19 who is currently above a healthy weight

How to access the service:

Ask your GP, health visitor or other healthcare professional about a referral into the Living Well Children and Family service. They can complete the referral form for you.

We also accept referrals from:

Non-healthcare professionals such as early help or education staff
Self-referrals where the height and weight of the child is known

Other information:

If the child is under 13, the team will work with their parents or carers and the child doesn’t need to be present
If the child is over 13 the child does need to be present for the sessions
We require consent from parents or carers and for them to be present when sessions take place, this doesn’t have to be in the same room as the young person if they are over 13
The service can offer additional sessions to families where requested

Booking your first session:

Once the team receives your referral, one of our advisors will be in touch by phone to discuss the referral and to book your first session.

What to expect at sessions:

The service offers seven sessions. The first is with an advisor and is a ‘get to know you’ session. You’ll complete a questionnaire where you’ll be asked questions about your child’s health, lifestyle and wellbeing. This helps the advisors to tailor the support to the needs of you and your family.

The following six sessions are where you’ll discuss a range of topics around diet, physical activity, sleep and overall wellbeing.

There is a follow up session 26 weeks after you start, which is a chance to review progress and goals and complete a refocus plan if needed.

Feedback from some of our service users:

“I feel I am healthier and I have learnt about portion sizes as well as food labels”

“I completely cut out energy drinks …not having any more cravings”

“My daughter is more self-conscious on what she puts in her body and has started to be more active and has found so many health benefits since the sessions have started”

“I am more conscious of what I eat and the amount of physical activity I need to do”