Statutory services, a brief guide

This is a brief description of the main statutory agencies providing services for children and young people in Herefordshire. For comprehensive details of statutory services and voluntary organisations, please select the Children's Resource Directory from the menu on the left.

Education
For all the information you may need about learning in Herefordshire, whether you are at school, a parent or a teacher, please visit the dedicated Herefordshire education website as shown in the Resource box below.

Childcare Services: Early years education, childcare, out-of-school and childminding settings are included on the Herefordshire Education website and are also listed on the national Childcare website, see details below.

Leominster and Kington SureStart works with children up to the age of 4 years, their parents and parents-to-be in 16 parishes between Leominster and Brilley. Call at Info in Herefordshire at 11 Corn Square, Leominster, telephone (01432) 383340, or drop into Kington Town shop, or email Leominster/kingtonsurestart@Herefordshire.gov.uk for further details.

SureStart Bromyard aims to give children under 4 years of age the best start in life, improving health and wellbeing of families and children, helping them to flourish at school and in later life. They aim to do this by re-shaping current services, filling gaps where they exist and by providing better and more co-ordinated support for families. They consult parents and get them actively involved in the planning and developing of the services that they need. They can be contacted by email at HOPEfamilycentre@AOL.com or telephone (01885) 488495.

Herefordshire Children's Fund commissions a number of preventative services in several identified priority areas of the county and also offers services to young carers, travellers and children with disabilities. The age range is 5 to 13 years. For further information telephone (01432) 383047 or email childrensfund@herefordshire.gov.uk 

Connexions Herefordshire and Worcestershire is a youth support service, set up to ensure that all 13 - 19 year olds get the information, guidance and practical help they need in preparing for adult and working life. Extra help is available for those most in need. For further details visit the website, as shown in the Resource box below.

Youth Service: Working in partnership with young people (mainly between 13 and 19 years old), the Youth Service aims to provide informal educational opportunities for them to develop skills and abilities, provide opportunities for them to influence decisions and to become full and active members of their communities.  Website details are given below.

Health
A cross-trust health community website for Herefordshire is now available. This website has the latest news and information about the three NHS Trusts in Herefordshire together with details of services, maps and contact details. Also listed below is the national website where searches can be made by postcode for GPs, dentists, opticians and pharmacies.

For more specialised services, the following local health sites are available:

• Mental health:  this website has a section dedicated to children and young people (with regard to mental health).
• Disability: A free, impartial and confidential service of information, advice, and in some cases, practical help, ABLE (formerly DIAL) provides one focal point of contact for the multitude of questions that can confront adults and children with a disability. Visit their website.
• Drugsfaqs is a site that was designed on behalf of the Herefordshire Drugs Action Team and is aimed at students and young people in Herefordshire. On this site you can find out all about drugs and ask questions too.

Social Care
Details of social services offered to children and families can be found by selecting the following sections from the menu on the left: Child Protection, Fostering, Adoption, Aftercare, Children with Disabilities.

Young Offenders
The main aim of the Youth Offending Service is to prevent offending by children and young people. They mainly work with young people between the ages of 10 and 17 years old. This is a multi-agency team covering Worcestershire and Herefordshire, the partners of which are the Local Education Authority, Social Services, Health, Police and Probation. Further information can be found by clicking the link in the Resource box below.

For enquiries relating to this page, please contact CCM@herefordshire.gov.uk or ring (01432)260100.