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From working as School Nurses in the NHS for 8 years and as a private company for five years we have discovered that the gaps in local and national provision are huge. We felt no one was being proactive. The existing services linking health and education are overstretched and aren't working.

These are the gaps we fill.

We felt like no one else was doing anything to fill them and it was failing the children who needed the most support. We felt that the decision makers didn't understand what these things could change if they were addressed. Two of us completed a Specialist Community Public Health BSC in School Nursing (we both achieved First Class Hons) and resolved to change things. Because we have the experience, qualifications and specialist skills we are in a unique position to do this. We have had to become leaders of change and we continue to do this within our service. We have gradually built up links with other health services and with education providers. We regularly refer to Paediatricians, mental health services, assessment services, therapeutic services and statutory safeguarding teams. These links have helped us become established, respected and trusted as a service. We also have a large community of Head Teachers, school staff and parents who spread the word and are supportive and appreciative of what we do. The existing services provided by the Local Authority 0-19 teams have been able to focus on safeguarding and immunisations because we have provided the targeted one to one support for children and young people directly in their schools. We focus on emotional, mental and physical health through interventions, advice and training which allows the statutory services to focus on underpinning child health from their perspective. We work closely with them and feel we complement what they do. Our focus is much more face to face early intervention to address inequality early and prevent more serious issues