Child healthy weight support for professionals
One-stop resource for professionals featuring Tower Hamlets holistic Child Healthy Weight support offer.
The Child Healthy Weight Directory of Support Services brings together in one document all the available support services and assets in Tower Hamlets that help families to address obesity and its drivers. Because there is no one-size fits all solution when it comes to weight support, the directory takes a holistic approach by listing support that considers the wider determinants of healthy weight and addresses the drivers of obesity.
Looking for Waltham Forest services for parents & families?
Find our full range of Waltham Forest services on the the your health service page.
Click HereHow to use the directory
When having conversations about health and weight professionals should avoid making any assumptions and should instead try to understand the individual’s circumstances so that the right support can be offered. This directory should be used as a supportive tool when having these conversations, so families can be directed to services that best meet their needs. This could be a parenting programme, food bank, or mental and emotional health support.
The directory is set out as below:
- Pages 1 to 11 provide details about a range of local services available to Tower Hamlets families.
- Pages 12 to 16 provide a selection of evidence based digital resources that can be shared with families.
- Page 17 provides information about training and resources for professionals.
This directory is non-exhaustive and will be reviewed and updated bi-annually. Please contact: thgpcg.childhealthyweight@nhs.net for any service changes.
Child Healthy Weight (CHW) Intervention Guides
The Intervention guides provide prompts to support professionals having holistic conversations with children and families about healthy weight. Having these conversations is essential to understanding individual needs, motivation, and interests. We encourage professionals to use these guides alongside the Child Healthy Weight directory to effectively connect families to the right support as early as possible. The Intervention Guides are based on the 3 A’s framework from Make Every Contact Count (MECC). MECC conversations are person-centred and focused on jointly understanding an individual’s capability and motivation to make positive changes. They are often about ‘planting a seed’ and supporting someone to access the resources they need, to make change happen.
Child Healthy Weight (CHW) Intervention GuidesE-learning to support
Children and Young People's Growth and Nutritional Health
This training is suitable for the following professional group(s):
- 0-5 wider community workforce
- 0-19 services
- Primary care
This session provides information to healthcare professionals about the importance of the relationship between mother and baby during pregnancy and following birth, as well as information around breast and bottle feeding.
Available via: Infant Feeding (IFE) > Infant Feeding > 01_01 Infant Feeding
This module takes approximately 30 minutes to complete
This training is suitable for the following professional group(s):
- Any professional whose role involves growth measurements
- Healthy Child Programme (HCP) Module 8: 07 - 08 - for 0-19 services
- Complications of Excess Weight (CEW) - All
- HCP Module 8 (Growth & Nutrition), Sub-modules: 07-09.
Each module takes approximately 30 minutes to complete on E-learning for healthcare.
- Complications of Excess Weight (CEW) in Children and Young People: Understanding different levels of overweight in children and young people
This module takes approximately 30 minutes to complete.
- Weighing and Measuring training (only available for GPCG staff, or on request)
The GPCG Child Healthy Weight team provide a half-day, face-to-face training on weighing and measuring. It is suitable for staff wishing to attend a refresher or for those who want to learn new skills and knowledge, including plotting for preterm infants. This training includes an introduction to UK-WHO growth charts and covers both theory and practical elements, such as accurately plotting and interpreting a child’s growth measurements, monitoring growth and when intervention is necessary. For more information please contact: Phoebe Kalungi p.kalungi@nhs.net
This training is suitable for the following professional group(s):
- Health visiting
- 0-5 wider community workforce
This learning resource developed by Nottingham University and endorsed by the Institute of Health Visiting will help you understand why early identification of the risk of childhood overweight is important. It will introduce you to the Infant Risk of Overweight Checklist (IROC) and provide some practical examples to improve your knowledge about identifying specific risk factors.
Available via: GRO BabyGRO Training
This module takes approximately 30 minutes to complete.
This training is suitable for the following professional group(s):
- 0-19 services
- Primary care
HCP Module 8, Sub-module 10: Common Nutritional Problems in Pre-schoolers
This session explores the symptoms, causes, diagnosis and management of a number of frequently encountered nutrition-related conditions like constipation, food allergy, gastro-oesophageal reflux, iron and vitamin D deficiencies.
Available via: Healthy Child Programme (HCP) - HCP 08 - Growth and Nutrition
This module takes approximately 40 minutes to complete.
This training is suitable for the following professional group(s):
- 0-19 services
- Primary care
- Community pediatric nurses
HCP Module 8, Sub-module 11: Feeding Children with Development Difficulties: This session explores the difficulty children with neurological disabilities commonly encounter with feeding, together with associated problems that can result in growth failure and malnutrition-related multi-system complications. It covers assessment and management, which often involves a range of professionals including a dietitian, occupational therapist, speech and language therapist and paediatrician.
Available via: Healthy Child Programme (HCP) - HCP 08 - Growth and Nutrition
This module takes approximately 30 minutes to complete.
This training is suitable for the following professional group(s):
- 0-5 wider community workforce
- 0-19 services
- Primary care
HCP Module 8, Sub-module 5: Healthy Eating for Toddlers and Young Children aged 1- 4 years This session describes ways of identifying what constitutes healthy eating to satisfy unique toddler requirements. In addition, the session also examines toddler behaviours such as fussy eating and food neophobia and the impact these behaviours can have on nutritional intake.
Available via: Healthy Child Programme (HCP) - HCP 08 - Growth and Nutrition
This module takes approximately 30 minutes to complete.
This training is suitable for the following professional group(s):
- 0-5 wider community workforce
- 0-19 services
- Primary care
HCP Module 8, Sub-module 12: Obese Toddlers and Infants: This session will support you to understand the common causes of obesity in very young children, and equip you with a range of strategies for supporting families where obesity is a concern.
Available via: Healthy Child Programme (HCP) - HCP 08 - Growth and Nutrition
This module takes approximately 45 minutes to complete.
This training is suitable for the following professional group(s):
- 0-5 wider community workforce
- 0-19 services
- Primary care
HCP Module 12, Sub-modules 1-4, 6 and 10.This course is split into 9 modules:
- 12_01 Body shape and body image in adolescence – explores the normal variations and trends in body shape during adolescence and the factors that commonly influence it, including genetic, ethnic and lifestyle factors.
- 12_02 Nutritional requirements in adolescence – describes nutritional requirements during adolescence, typical eating patterns which could lead to nutritional deficiencies, common dieting strategies used, and the additional nutritional needs arising with pregnancy.
- 12_03 Development of normal eating behaviour – describes patterns of eating behaviour in adolescence and the factors that influence these patterns.
- 12_04 Obesity in young people – describes recent trends, causes and sequelae of obesity in adolescence and assesses treatment options, including common dieting and exercise approaches.
- 12_06 Medical assessment and management of obesity – describes the key elements in the medical assessment and management of adolescent obesity and its relation to type 2 diabetes. It will also cover the identification of pathological causes of obesity.
- 12_10 Multidisciplinary management of adolescent obesity – focuses on management of obesity at an individual level. It describes the multi-disciplinary treatment of obesity in adolescents outlining current guidelines for best practice and relevant public policy documents.
Available via: Adolescent Health Programme (AH) - AH 12 - Overweight and underweight
Each module takes approximately 30 minutes to complete.
This training is suitable for the following professional group(s):
- School nursing team
These e-learning tools have been developed by University of Bath to support practitioners working with families around child healthy weight, and how to utilise the ‘Talking to your child about weight’ resource.
E-learning available via: Home - Using the resource ‘Talking to your child about weight’ (bath.ac.uk)
This training takes approximately 30 minutes to complete.
This training is suitable for the following professional group(s):
- MDT Clinicians
The purpose of the E-learning programme is to:
- MDT Support MDT clinicians to deliver evidence-based, quality care to CYP with severe obesity by developing their understanding of identifying and treating conditions related to excess weight Clinicians
- Standardise training opportunities across the country and improve retention by making this a more attractive space to work in
- Facilitate knowledge transfer between MDT members
- Further information can be found here
The course consists of 5 modules which look at and explore:
- Introduction to identification of complications associated with excessive weight in children and young people
- Understanding different levels of overweight in in children and young people
- Connection between obesity and mental health
- Interventions for childhood weight management
- Prevalence of childhood obesity, risk factors, social determinants and appropriate safeguarding
Available via: Complications of excess weight (CEW) in children and young people - elearning for healthcare (e-lfh.org.uk)
This module takes approximately 30 minutes to complete.
Information for healthcare professionals
This training is suitable for the following professional group(s):
- All
- Schools
This module will help you to support the children you care for to maintain good oral health. It covers the main causes of tooth decay and simple actions that can be taken to prevent the problem.
Available via: Children Oral Health Programme
This module takes approximately 20 minutes to complete
This training is suitable for the following professional group(s):
- All
The MECC eLearning programme is designed to support learners in developing an understanding of public health and the factors that impact on a person’s health and wellbeing.MECC recognises that staff across health and care, local authority and voluntary sectors have thousands of contacts every day with individuals and are ideally placed to support health and wellbeing.
Available via: Making Every Contact Count - elearning for healthcare (e-lfh.org.uk)
There are 4 sessions which take approximately 20-30 minutes each to complete.
This training is suitable for the following professional group(s):
- All
The Cultural Competence e-learning tool is designed to support clinicians in the NHS to gain knowledge and understanding of the issues around culture and health; and how this might influence health care outcomes.
Available via: NHSE elfh Hub (e-lfh.org.uk)
There are 3 modules which take approximately 20-30 minutes each to complete.
This training is suitable for the following professional group(s):
- All
The 'Transformation Partners in Health and Care' have developed a guidance document on disordered eating and provide a blog and webinar series for professionals to explore and better understand disordered eating.
Available via: Disordered Eating Guidance
Health Education England have also produced an Eating disorders training directory containing resources and training to support healthcare professionals. Available via: Directory-of-Resources
This training is suitable for the following professional group(s):
- All
This online training will equip professionals to better understand the negative impact of weight stigma on individual and public health. It introduces approaches to address weight stigma and improve health outcomes for people living with excess weight.
Available via: Public Health Scotland Weight Stigma Learning Hub
City of Doncaster Council have produced a webpage for health and wellbeing professionals to learn more about compassionate approach to weight and weight stigma.
This module takes approximately 30 minutes to complete.
This training is suitable for the following professional group(s):
- Primary care
- Primary care networks
The Healthy Weight Coach eLearning programme has been developed for colleagues who already engage and interact with people as part of their role and are interested in supporting people who want to prioritise their weight, health and wellbeing. It is primarily aimed at supporting adults living with overweight and obesity to make positive changes to their health and weight-related behaviours. However, modules would be relevant for supporting children and families
- Session 1: The role of a healthy weight coach
- Session 2: The complexity of weight gain, obesity and weight management
- Session 3: Measuring and assessing a person's weight
- Session 4: The outcomes associated with overweight, obesity and weight management
- Session 5: Healthy eating, drinking and physical activity
- Session 6: Avoiding weight stigma and challenging biases
- Session 7: Supporting behaviour change
- Session 8: How to communicate effectively
Available via: The Healthy Weight Coach Training
This training is suitable for the following professional group(s):
- School nursing team
These e-learning tools have been developed by University of Bath to support practitioners working with families around child healthy weight, and how to utilise the ‘Talking to your child about weight’ resource.
E-learning available via: Home - Using the resource ‘Talking to your child about weight’ (bath.ac.uk)
This training takes approximately 30 minutes to complete.
This training is suitable for the following professional group(s):
- MDT Clinicians
The purpose of the E-learning programme is to:
- MDT Support MDT clinicians to deliver evidence-based, quality care to CYP with severe obesity by developing their understanding of identifying and treating conditions related to excess weight Clinicians
- Standardise training opportunities across the country and improve retention by making this a more attractive space to work in
- Facilitate knowledge transfer between MDT members
- Further information can be found here
The course consists of 5 modules which look at and explore:
- Introduction to identification of complications associated with excessive weight in children and young people
- Understanding different levels of overweight in in children and young people
- Connection between obesity and mental health
- Interventions for childhood weight management
- Prevalence of childhood obesity, risk factors, social determinants and appropriate safeguarding
Available via: Complications of excess weight (CEW) in children and young people - elearning for healthcare (e-lfh.org.uk)
This module takes approximately 30 minutes to complete.
