Defining essential perinatal mental health care: children's services

What is the role of children's services in providing essential PMH care?

• Children’s services are responsible for supporting children and families, including by providing early years support. This can include developing community spaces such as children’s centres or family hubs and working closely with the NHS to support health visiting services
  

• For families who need additional help to give their children the care they need, early help and child protection services can offer targeted support to help address additional social or emotional support needs.
  

• A social worker who has extra skills and experience in perinatal mental health (PMH) can bring this specialist understanding to a range of different settings, including children’s centres, family hubs, benefits, and housing advice agencies.
  

• Training in PMH and its impact will help all staff working within children’s services provide women, babies and families with the appropriate support.
  

• A specialist perinatal social worker can act as a bridge between specialist PMH, maternity and social care services and help these different services work in a more coordinated way.