Search Results for "Children's health and development"

Guidance for every stage of your child’s development [ADHD and autism for children and young people Information about ADHD and autism and support for daily life.](https://www.berkshirehealthcare.nhs.uk/advice-and-resources/adhd-and-autism-for-children-and-young-people) [Communication and hearing Resources to help your child speak, listen, and learn.](https://www.berkshirehealthcare.nhs.uk/advice-and-resources/childrens-health-and-development/communication-and-hearing) [Child safety Guidance to help keep children safe.](https://www.berkshirehealthcare.nhs.uk/child-safety) [Eating, allergies, and healthy lifestyle Exploring new foods and healthy habits, and managing allergies.](https://www.berkshirehealthcare.nhs.uk/advice-and-resources/childrens-health-and-development/eating-allergies-and-healthy-lifestyle) [Fine motor skills Encouraging skills for writing, dressing, and play.](https://www.berkshirehealthcare.nhs.uk/advice-and-resources/childrens-health-and-development/fine-motor-skills) [Gross motor skills Supporting physical skills like crawling, walking and jumping](https://www.berkshirehealthcare.nhs.uk/advice-and-resources/childrens-health-and-development/gross-motor-skills) [Immunisations What you need to know about vaccines.](https://www.berkshirehealthcare.nhs.uk/childrens-immunisations) [Independence and school readiness Encouraging confidence and independence.](https://www.berkshirehealthcare.nhs.uk/advice-and-resources/childrens-health-and-development/independence-and-school-readiness) [Mental and emotional wellbeing Coping with stress, low mood, and grief, plus where to get help and support others.](https://www.berkshirehealthcare.nhs.uk/advice-and-resources/mental-and-emotional-wellbeing) [Sensory processing Helping your child manage sensory experiences.](https://www.berkshirehealthcare.nhs.uk/advice-and-resources/childrens-health-and-development/sensory-processing) [School health information Supporting your child’s health throughout their school years.](https://www.berkshirehealthcare.nhs.uk/advice-and-resources/childrens-health-and-development/school-health-information) [Toilet training and bedwetting Practical tips for toilet training and bedwetting.](https://www.berkshirehealthcare.nhs.uk/advice-and-resources/childrens-health-and-development/toilet-training-and-bedwetting) [Looking after your baby and yourself Supporting you and your child through every stage of their development.](https://www.berkshirehealthcare.nhs.uk/advice-and-resources/childrens-health-and-development/your-baby-and-you) [What is SEND? Information, and local support for families managing special educational needs and disabilities.](https://www.berkshirehealthcare.nhs.uk/special-educational-needs-and-disabilities)

Parents and young people Explore health advice, mental wellbeing resources, and support tailored especially for parents and young people. Tailored advice

How we can help [Early years development Problems that affect how a baby or young child grows, learns, or develops.](https://www.berkshirehealthcare.nhs.uk/conditions-and-services/children-and-young-people-s-health/early-years-development) [Mental health and emotional wellbeing Mood, thinking, and behaviour problems that can start in childhood.](https://www.berkshirehealthcare.nhs.uk/conditions-and-services/children-and-young-people-s-health/mental-health-and-emotional-wellbeing-in-children-and-young-people) [Neurodevelopmental needs that present in childhood Differences in brain development that may affect behaviour.](https://www.berkshirehealthcare.nhs.uk/conditions-and-services/children-and-young-people-s-health/neurodevelopmental-conditions) [Physical health needs that present in childhood Health issues that affect how muscles, bones, or organs work.](https://www.berkshirehealthcare.nhs.uk/conditions-and-services/children-and-young-people-s-health/physical-health-conditions) [Speech, language, and communication Problems that can affect a child's ability to communicate.](https://www.berkshirehealthcare.nhs.uk/conditions-and-services/children-and-young-people-s-health/speech-language-and-communication) [Learning Disability Services Information and support for people with learning disabilities and their families.](https://www.berkshirehealthcare.nhs.uk/learning-disability-services) [What is SEND? Information, and local support for families managing special educational needs and disabilities.](https://www.berkshirehealthcare.nhs.uk/special-educational-needs-and-disabilities)

Supporting your child’s health throughout their school years [General health and development Find information to support your child's health and development.](https://www.berkshirehealthcare.nhs.uk/advice/general-child-health-and-development) [Continence Information about night-time and daytime wetting and constipation.](https://www.berkshirehealthcare.nhs.uk/advice/continence-in-children) [Immunisations If children are not fully vaccinated, they're at risk of catching diseases.](https://www.berkshirehealthcare.nhs.uk/advice/immunisations-for-children) [Healthy weight and keeping active Maintaining a healthy weight and staying active increases a child’s overall health.](https://www.berkshirehealthcare.nhs.uk/advice/healthy-weight-and-keeping-active-in-childhood) [Sleep Sleep is so important for a child's development and learning.](https://www.berkshirehealthcare.nhs.uk/advice/sleep-in-childhood) [Speech development Concerns with your child's speech, such as difficulty with pronunciation or understanding.](https://www.berkshirehealthcare.nhs.uk/advice/communication-and-hearing/speech-development) [The Healthy Child Programme A national programme offering screening, immunisation information, support, and advice.](https://www.berkshirehealthcare.nhs.uk/advice/the-healthy-child-programme)

Encouraging confidence and independence [Buttons and zips Help your child learn to open and close buttons and zips.](https://www.berkshirehealthcare.nhs.uk/advice/independence-and-school-readiness/buttons-and-zips) [Dressing skills Problems getting dressed due to movement or learning difficulties.](https://www.berkshirehealthcare.nhs.uk/advice/independence-and-school-readiness/dressing-skills) [Organisation and planning skills Poor organisational skills can make it difficult to develop independence.](https://www.berkshirehealthcare.nhs.uk/advice/independence-and-school-readiness/organisation-and-planning-skills) [Paying attention Some children have difficulty focusing, making it much harder to learn.](https://www.berkshirehealthcare.nhs.uk/advice/independence-and-school-readiness/paying-attention) [Putting on shoes and socks Some children put their socks on the wrong way around or shoes on the wrong foot.](https://www.berkshirehealthcare.nhs.uk/advice/independence-and-school-readiness/putting-on-shoes-and-socks) [Switching tasks (transitioning) Some children find it difficult to settle or cope with moving to a different task or room.](https://www.berkshirehealthcare.nhs.uk/advice/independence-and-school-readiness/switching-tasks) [The journey to school Support your child to develop the skills needed for school.](https://www.berkshirehealthcare.nhs.uk/advice/independence-and-school-readiness/the-journey-to-school)

Resources to help your child speak, listen and learn [Auditory processing Auditory processing is essential in the development of language skills.](https://www.berkshirehealthcare.nhs.uk/advice/communication-and-hearing/auditory-processing) [Babbling and baby talk Your baby will start learning how to communicate as soon as they’re born.](https://www.berkshirehealthcare.nhs.uk/advice/communication-and-hearing/babbling-and-baby-talk) [Basic communication strategies Everyone involved in a child’s life can play a part in developing communication skills.](https://www.berkshirehealthcare.nhs.uk/advice/communication-and-hearing/basic-communication-strategies) [Deafness and hearing loss Deafness can be a permanent or temporary condition, and can be caused by a range of factors.](https://www.berkshirehealthcare.nhs.uk/advice/communication-and-hearing/deafness-and-hearing-loss) [English as an additional language Advice for raising children to speak two or more languages.](https://www.berkshirehealthcare.nhs.uk/advice/communication-and-hearing/english-as-an-additional-language) [Expressive language Expressive language is the way we form sentences to express meaning.](https://www.berkshirehealthcare.nhs.uk/advice/communication-and-hearing/expressive-language) [Grammar Grammar is the name given to our rules of language and how we structure it.](https://www.berkshirehealthcare.nhs.uk/advice/communication-and-hearing/grammar) [Helping children with unclear speech It’s important to respond to what the child says, not to how clearly they speak.](https://www.berkshirehealthcare.nhs.uk/advice/communication-and-hearing/helping-children-with-unclear-speech) [Listening and attention at school Listening and attention are skills that have to be developed, much like walking and talking.](https://www.berkshirehealthcare.nhs.uk/advice/communication-and-hearing/listening-and-attention-at-school) [Sequencing and narrative skills Sequencing is the ability to put ideas into the right chronological order.](https://www.berkshirehealthcare.nhs.uk/advice/communication-and-hearing/sequencing-and-narrative-skills) [Social communication (pragmatics) Pragmatics describes the way we understand and use language and communication.](https://www.berkshirehealthcare.nhs.uk/advice/communication-and-hearing/social-communication-pragmatics) [Speech development Concerns with your child's speech, such as difficulty with pronunciation or understanding.](https://www.berkshirehealthcare.nhs.uk/advice/communication-and-hearing/speech-development) [Speech sounds Speech is a series of sounds which are used together to form words and sentences.](https://www.berkshirehealthcare.nhs.uk/advice/communication-and-hearing/speech-sounds) [Stammering advice Many young children will often stutter while they’re learning to speak.](https://www.berkshirehealthcare.nhs.uk/advice/communication-and-hearing/stammering) [Steps to talking Children usually take similar steps in building up their vocabulary.](https://www.berkshirehealthcare.nhs.uk/advice/communication-and-hearing/steps-to-talking) [Toddler talk Children learn language best from the people around them talking.](https://www.berkshirehealthcare.nhs.uk/advice/communication-and-hearing/toddler-talk) [Typical speech sound development Children develop speech sounds over time, with words gradually sounding more like the adult version.](https://www.berkshirehealthcare.nhs.uk/advice/communication-and-hearing/typical-speech-sound-development) [Understanding language Understanding and processing language is the ability to understand the words.](https://www.berkshirehealthcare.nhs.uk/advice/communication-and-hearing/understanding-language) [Vocabulary Our vocabulary is made up of words that we understand and can use in a correct and meaningful way.](https://www.berkshirehealthcare.nhs.uk/advice/communication-and-hearing/vocabulary)

We offer health and development checks for babies and children as part of the Healthy Child Programme. We will let you know the date and time of your appointment and send you a text reminder. If you need to cancel or change your appointment, please tell us as soon as you can.

Our school nursing teams are led by school nurses (nurses and midwives with specialist public health qualifications), with support from community staff nurses, school health assistants and administrators. We support the health and wellbeing of school-aged children and young people who attend state-maintained schools, free schools and academy schools in Bracknell Forest, Wokingham, Reading and West Berkshire. We also provide support for children who are home educated.

Referrals to our service must come from professionals who work with the child, such as GPs, health visitors, or school nurses. Parents and carers are not able to refer directly. We accept referrals for children with: Suspected autism (ages 2.5-4). Delays in two or more developmental areas (communication and social communication count as one). Developmental regression (loss of skills). Suspected/diagnosed motor or movement disorders (e. g. Cerebral Palsy).

If your child is not in school yet and you are worried about how they eat, drink, or swallow, talk to your health visitor first. If your concern is about their speech or communication, please don't complete a referral form. Call us and speak directly with a Speech and Language Therapist to talk about your child’s communication. We'll discuss your concerns and arrange any follow-up if needed. If you're worried about a swallowing issue and your child is losing weight, keeps getting chest infections, or often coughs or gags when eating, ask your health visitor or GP for a referral. Alternatively, you could fill in the online referral form, found below, yourself.

[Hand skills Using hands to grasp, grip, and using fingers one at a time to do day-to-day activities and play.](https://www.berkshirehealthcare.nhs.uk/advice/fine-motor-skills/hand-skills) [Handwriting Strategies, practical advice, and tips to support handwriting development.](https://www.berkshirehealthcare.nhs.uk/advice/fine-motor-skills/handwriting)

Overview Learn about balance, core stability, confidence in movement, and standing and stepping. You’ll also find support for physical skills like throwing and catching, riding a tricycle and jumping.