“They were glowing with purpose. They can see that it’s working”: Frank Cottrell-Boyce meets health visitors in Newcastle

Published on: 08 January 2025

Waterstones Children's Laureate Frank Cottrell-Boyce hears from those using books and stories in their work to support families' health and wellbeing. Here's what he took away from his visit with health visitors in Newcastle.

In November 2024, Frank Cottrell-Boyce visited Riverside Community Health Project in Benwell, in the West End of Newcastle. Here, he met with 10 specialist health visitors who are involved in collaborative projects that support the health and wellbeing of families in their area – and who use books as an essential tool in their daily work.

"All of the health visitors came from such different fields," says Frank. "Some were supporting families affected by drugs and alcohol addiction; others supported refugees, or parents with complex mental health needs. I was interested in how connected they are to their communities, and how their projects were very geographic-specific."

In tough times, purpose prevails

During their conversation with Frank, the health visitors acknowledged that they are weathering extreme time and resource pressures. Meanwhile, the families they work with are experiencing long waiting lists of more than two years for support with their children's speech and language delays or neurodiversity assessments, not to mention the ongoing effects of the cost-of-living crisis.

But despite these enduring challenges, families' engagement with the services the health visitors provide is high – and the health visitors' love for their vocation left a huge impression on Frank.

"Right now, almost any group of professionals you talk to are at the end of their tether," says Frank. "These health visitors absolutely were not. They were glowing with purpose. Their staff retention is enormous. It was such a joyous thing to see."

Books as essential tools for health visitors

Becky Humphreys, Specialist Health Visitor for Complex and Vulnerable Families at the Newcastle Upon Tyne NHS Foundation Trust, says: "It's really refreshing that Frank Cottrell-Boyce is coming to health visiting practices as part of his Laureateship. What I would like him to take away is how much health visitors use books throughout their career.

"At any point in a child's life, we can use a book to make an assessment of that child's development needs, whether it's assessing their gross motor or fine motor skills, or their emotional needs. We can use any book to do this - that's what we're really skilled at."

She adds: "Without books, I'm not sure how we'd be able to do it.

"The way we can use books in the most creative way to assess and a develop a child at a certain development stage is just unreal. You can't do that with many things other than a book."

Trusted buildings as a springboard for support

The health visitors shared with Frank how collaboration between health visitors, midwives, and family hubs is a core way of working in Newcastle.

"We spoke a lot about trusted buildings (like family hubs)," says Frank. "The kind of building that's been there a long time. Perhaps it's called something like 'the old library'. It doesn't seem to have a very specific purpose, so there's no embarrassment about going into it.

"It's the kind of place you might pop into for a routine baby check, or a story time session. You might go in there for support with domestic violence, but because the baby group is also happening in there, it's seen as a benign, open, trusted building.

"The health visitors spoke about parents they support who might come into one of these buildings for a group story time with the baby. Off the back of joining that story time, a young mum could migrate to another group for support, and then another. One parent ended up training as a health visitor herself - all from turning up to a story time session."

Building new parents' self-confidence

Supporting families to bond and ensuring children reach key developmental milestones is part and parcel of health visitors' work. Frank recalls: "One health visitor explained how she demonstrates to new parents how important their voices are to their new baby.

"In a multi-occupancy household, she'll lift up the baby and ask their mum to say something. The baby then immediately looks at mum. The health visitor then asks the baby's dad to do the same. The baby looks straight at their dad. The health visitor then says to others in the home: 'Somebody else say something.' And the baby pays no attention whatsoever to anybody else. It's like a magic trick."

He adds: "A very big part of these health visitors' job is giving young parents confidence in their own importance. It's about proving to young parents that they're important."

For parents who find talking to their baby or child intimidating, the health visitors shared how they'll use books as an aid to show how they can talk together around a story. The revealed the value of having books to hand that they can give families to keep – and the importance of programmes like the Baby Box project (which BookTrust partners with in Newcastle and Gateshead).

Final thoughts from Frank

Frank says: "I'm becoming more and more aware that reading a book is just a pretext for sharing a moment. Bringing a child and their carer together is what it's about. This Reading Rights campaign is about families' wellbeing and health, mental health and love.

He adds: "These health visitors were so positive. It's because they can see that this works. Their happiness is all the proof needed that this is good."

Find out more about the Waterstones Children's Laureate's Reading Rights campaign