Croydon Well Baby clinics extend support across borough

A new pattern of “Well Baby” drop-in sessions run by Croydon’s health visiting team is bringing routine checks, weighing and early-years advice into three neighbourhood venues each week, giving parents of babies aged up to 10 months more chances to see a health professional close to home without booking a GP appointment.

From 22 September 2025, Croydon Health Services NHS Trust’s 0–19 Public Health Nursing Service has organised weekly Well Baby clinics at Woodlands Family Hub in South Croydon on Tuesday mornings, Selhurst Children’s Centre in the north of the borough on Wednesday mornings and Woodside Health Centre in South Norwood on Thursday lunchtimes, consolidating support that was previously spread across fewer, less regular slots into a clearly advertised timetable of free, local sessions for families with young infants.

Each clinic follows a simple format. Parents and carers arrive during the advertised hour and are greeted by members of the health visiting team, who weigh babies, plot growth, ask about feeding, sleep and development, and listen to any worries about crying, rashes, feeding difficulties or adjusting to life with a new child. Short conversations at the scales often lead to more detailed discussions in a side room, where visitors can talk through common issues such as colic, tongue-tie referrals or returning to work while breastfeeding.

The choice of venues reflects an attempt to weave child health into everyday places rather than specialist sites. Woodlands Family Hub sits next to a primary school, Selhurst Children’s Centre is in the middle of a residential street and Woodside Health Centre is on a busy local road, meaning many families can reach at least one clinic on foot or by a single bus ride. Morning and early afternoon slots are intended to suit parents bringing older siblings to nursery or school, shift workers finishing a night or early shift, and carers who rely on relatives to help with childcare later in the day.

Behind the local timetable lies a national framework. Health visiting teams across England are responsible for delivering five “universal health visitor reviews” in the early years, including the new birth visit, 6–8 week review and 2–2½ year developmental check. Official statistics show that in 2023–2024, 83.0% of babies in England received their new birth visit within 14 days and 97.8% received one within 30 days, while 78.4% of children had a 2–2½ year review during that period. London’s coverage for the later review, at 62.6%, sits below the national average, underlining the importance of keeping families engaged with local services as children grow.

The Well Baby clinics are designed to sit alongside these mandated reviews rather than replace them. Formal contacts are still arranged at key ages, but the drop-in model offers parents extra touchpoints when they feel unsure, have noticed a change between scheduled checks or have missed an appointment and want to catch up. For health visitors, clustering families in one place for a short, predictable session can make it easier to spot patterns, such as repeated questions about feeding or sleep from a particular estate, and to plan group sessions or signposting accordingly.

Community participation is a visible feature of the sessions. Parents waiting to be seen often swap practical tips on everything from baby carriers to local parks, while older siblings play in corners of the room set aside with mats and toys. For some carers, especially those who are new to the area or caring for their first child, the chance to watch others manage feeding, soothing and pram-folding in real time can be as reassuring as the clinical checks themselves, reinforcing the idea that minor setbacks are common and help is close at hand.

Equity is a central concern for health visiting nationally. The Institute of Health Visiting’s 2024 “State of Health Visiting” survey report, covering the UK as a whole, describes the service as a “vital safety net” that supports millions of families but notes that workforce and funding pressures mean not all who need help receive it, with practitioners highlighting the impact of rising poverty, food costs and housing problems on babies and young children. In that context, locating Well Baby clinics in family hubs and children’s centres, where families may already come for play sessions, benefits advice or food support, is intended to reduce the number of separate journeys and appointments required from those on the lowest incomes.

For staff, the new pattern of clinics offers both opportunities and challenges. Concentrating drop-ins into three fixed sessions each week provides clearer structure for the Croydon health visiting team, who can rotate duties, share complex cases and make sure at least one team member familiar with each locality is present. At the same time, rising demand for support with infant feeding, perinatal mental health and housing-related stress means caseloads remain high, and the clinics must be balanced against home visits and statutory safeguarding work.

Local leaders see the Well Baby timetable as one small but concrete example of how community-based services can adapt to shifting needs while staying rooted in everyday life. For a parent bringing a four-week-old baby to be weighed after a sleepless night, the most important outcome may be a simple, face-to-face reassurance that growth is on track. For the wider system, consistent drop-in sessions at familiar venues help maintain contact with families who might otherwise drift away from services, supporting early identification of concerns and, in time, contributing to the broader goal of reducing inequalities in child health across London.

12 December 2025 07:27 By London Health News Desk