About the Healthy School Child Programme
The Healthy School Child Programme (HSC) is an e-learning programme for all healthcare professionals working with children aged 5-12 years. It is the second programme in the Healthy Child Programme 0-18 series of e-learning resources, including the Healthy Child Programme and Adolescent Health Programme.
It is suitable for school nurses, GPs, trainee paediatricians and the child health team as a blended learning resource for those in training, or wishing to update. It can also be used as a browsable resource in conjunction with the MindEd child mental health e-learning programme. HSC focuses on the school-based team, the awareness, assessment and support of the mental and other health needs of primary school-age children, and the key issues around the identification and support of children with extra needs: social, physical or environmental.
This work was commissioned by the Department of Health and delivered by Health Education England e-Learning for Healthcare (e-LfH) in collaboration with a consortium of professional bodies. The materials have been written by subject specialists and experts in their particular field and have been subjected to extensive peer review.
The programme is not intended to replace core learning or textbooks on these subjects, but rather to focus on their impact on the health and wellbeing of the school-age child. The programme equally is not designed to address in any detail the specialist needs of children with very complex problems.
More information
The Healthy School Child Programme comprises 41 e-learning sessions, grouped together by topic into 7 learning modules. This programme consists of sessions that have been written specifically about the health of school-aged children, as well as sessions that have been developed in conjunction with MindEd, an open-access mental health programme, which have been brought into this programme to maximize the learning opportunity.
Each e-learning session takes approximately 20-30 minutes to complete. The sessions include interactive elements, case studies and self-assessments to reinforce learning and there are a range of resources signposted at the end of each session.
The full curriculum for the Healthy School Child Programme is available for download from the following link:
MindEd and the Healthy School Child Programme
In addition, the mental health topics included in the Healthy Child Programme are also freely available as part of the MindEd mental health e-learning programme. The Healthy Child Mental Health Framework brings together the mental health e-learning sessions from the Healthy Child Programme 0-18 series on the open-access MindEd platform. Visit the MindEd e-learning portal here.
HSC curriculum
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Module 1
Introduction to 21st Century School HealthModule 1
Introduction to 21st Century School Health
This module sets the context for the healthy school child programme and describes the wider team supporting children of primary school age and reviews the skills needed for engaging with children and families.
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Module 2
The Healthy Child Programme in Primary SchoolsModule 2
The Healthy Child Programme in Primary Schools
This module describes the approach of the school health team and the school nurse to supporting the health needs of the primary school child; the identification of the vulnerable child and the child with extra needs and the team approach to the provision of the support needed, particularly for the new entrant to school and those at the transition to secondary education.
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Module 3
Key Child Public Health and Mental Health Issues for 5-12 yearsModule 3
Key Child Public Health and Mental Health Issues for 5-12 years
This module describes the common public health issues affecting primary school children, including emotional development, infections, safety and accidents. It also summarises the issues around medication in school and offers an overview of child growth, nutrition, puberty, and obesity.
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Module 4
The Child with Additional NeedsModule 4
The Child with Additional Needs
This module looks at the identification, assessment and support of the child with additional needs including learning difficulties, neurodevelopmental problems such as attention deficit disorder (ADHD), autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and tics and Tourettes. The management of behaviour problems and issues around grief and loss and the needs of socially vulnerable children, including young carers are reviewed.
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Module 5
The Child with Additional Needs - Long-standing Illness or DisabilityModule 5
The Child with Additional Needs – Long-standing Illness or Disability
This module looks at common medical problems, how they affect children of primary school age and how they can be supported. This includes epilepsy, faints, funny turns, physical disabilities, cerebral palsy, asthma, hayfever, allergies and diabetes.
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Module 6
Common Developmental and Health Issues in School Children 5-12Module 6
Common Developmental and Health Issues in School Children 5-12
This module describes the support needed by children with common developmental problems with continence, wetting, soiling, hearing loss and vision problems. The management and support of children with eye infections and injuries, and bone, joint and muscle problems is reviewed; and an approach to headaches and migraine and sleep problems is described.
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Module 7
Other Problems and IssuesModule 7
Other Problems and Issues
This module offers an overview of the reasons for, consequences of, and management of school attendance. It also looks at some common or serious conditions that can be easily missed.
Sample sessions
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School health service
This session will explore the key aspects of a 21st century school health service, describing the multidisciplinary team involved in achieving optimum health for all school children aged between 5 and 12 years. It will contextualise the development of the school health team and its transition to modern day public health practice.
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Educational needs and barriers to learning
This session gives an overview of the different types of special educational needs and barriers to learning.
Project board
Dr Anu Raykundalia
Clinical Lead
Dr Fatima Kagalwala
Clinical Lead
Daniel Waeland
Director, Education and Training, RCPCH
Martin Sinclair
National Programme Director, HEE e-Learning for Healthcare
Clair Guy
Programme Manager, HEE e-Learning for Healthcare
Project team
Dr Anu Raykundalia
Clinical LeadDr Fatima Kagalwala
Clinical Lead
Ian O’Donoghue
Education and Professional Development Lead, RCPCH
Nicole Beckford
Project Manager, RCPCH
Jasmine Deol
Project Manager, HEE e-Learning for Healthcare
Sonali Gupta
Lead Instructional Designer, HEE e-Learning for Healthcare
How to access
In order to access the Healthy School Child programme, you will need an e-LfH account. If you do not have one, then you can register by selecting the Register button below.
To view the Healthy School Child programme, select the View button below. If you already have an account with e-LfH, you will also be able to login and enrol on the programme from the View button.
NHS healthcare staff in England
The Healthy School Child programme is also available to NHS healthcare staff via the Electronic Staff Record (ESR). Accessing this e-Learning via ESR means that your completions will transfer with you throughout your NHS career.
Further details are available here.
Adding ‘Healthy Child Programme 0-18’ content to your account
When registering for the ‘Healthy School Child Programme’, it is possible to add other programmes to your account. If you would like to view content from all programmes in the Healthy Child Programme 0-18 (Healthy Child Programme, Healthy School Child Programme and Adolescent Health Programme), then please follow this link, where it will illustrate how you can easily add e-learning content to your account, at any time.
Not an NHS organisation?
If you are not an NHS health or care organisation and therefore do not qualify for free access e-LfH Hub, you may be able to access the service by creating an OpenAthens account.
To check whether or not you qualify for free access via OpenAthens, you can view the eligibility criteria and register on the ‘OpenAthens’ portal.
Registering large numbers of users
If you are a HR, IT or Practice Manager and would like to register and enrol large numbers of staff within your organisation for access onto the Healthy School Child programme, please contact e-LfH directly.
Organisations wishing to use their own LMS
For HR departments wanting to know more about gaining access to courses using an existing Learning Management System please contact e-LfH directly to express interest.
How to license
In the event that you do not qualify for free access to the Healthy School Child programme, you are able to license access through eIntegrity, a community-interest company established for this purpose.
You can check whether or not you qualify for free access by clicking on the ‘Register’ button above.
For more information on the licensing options available for the Healthy School Child programme, please visit the eIntegrity website.
More information
Please select the following link for more information on how to use the e-LfH Hub.