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Information for professionals
This section outlines how you can:
- Make a referral for Children’s Centre Services or contact a Health Visitor
- Make a referral for Childcare Plus (previously Corporate Childcare)
- Contact Birmingham City Council Early Help and Safeguarding Services via CASS
Please note that any prospective service user will need to provide their consent in order for a referral to be made to BFS. For any referral for family support at universal services level, consent to the referral may be agreed verbally with the patient.
For any request for family support at universal plus level or above, the patient will need to provide their signed consent to the referral.
Phone the relevant Children’s Centre and we will be happy to discuss potential referrals and provide more detail about the services available to families.
Please click HERE to download the Request for Service form.
If you think the needs of the family match the criteria, please download the Childcare Plus Referral Form and complete the mandatory fields.
Enquiries
- Birmingham Forward Steps delivers a citywide service via a local network of Children’s Centres.
- If you wish to discuss a potential referral before submitting a referral form, then please find out which Children’s Centre is nearest the family you would like to discuss by checking using this postcode-search directory.
How do I make a referral for Children’s Centre Services or contact a Health Visiting Team?
- We welcome referrals from all agencies seeking services for children under 5 and their families, including pre-birth support.
- There are a number of ways to refer a family for Birmingham Forward Steps services (Health Visiting and Children’s Centre Services).
- Birmingham Forward Steps delivers a citywide service via a local network of Children’s Centres.
- Please find out which Children’s Centre is nearest the family you are referring by checking using this postcode-search directory.
- Please CLICK HERE to download the Request for Service form.
- Please note the transfer of personal details needs to be completed by a secure email. For each children’s centre, there is a dedicated nhs.net email address which you can view by viewing the BFS CONTACT DIRECTORY which includes all Health Visiting teams, Children’s Centres and Satellites. Email address is the final column in the excel directory.
- Alternatively, phone the relevant children’s centre and state that you would like to make a referral. The receptionist will then transfer you to the appropriate team.
Childcare Plus (Previously Corporate Childcare)
The way you access Corporate Childcare funding has changed. From Thursday 1 March 2018, Birmingham Forward Steps, has managed the Childcare Funding at a District Level.
We have had to reduce the level of funding available for childcare places, which is now assigned to districts based on deprivation and need.
The criteria for allocation of the funding has changed. Childcare Plus Funding is now allocated against the following three criteria:
- children for whom there are concerns about their physical and emotional wellbeing as a result of the care they receive or the environment in which they live
- children whose behaviour and/or development give serious cause for concern
- children whose attendance at a Children’s Centre is part of a family support plan/package of support.
If you think the needs of the family match the criteria, Childcare Plus Referral Form and complete the mandatory fields.
Birmingham Forward Steps delivers a citywide service via a local network of Children’s Centres. Please find out which Children’s Centre is nearest the family you are referring by checking using this postcode verifier. Phone the relevant children’s centre and state that you would like to make a referral, the receptionist will then transfer you to the appropriate team.
Your referral will be taken to a weekly Integrated Allocation Meeting to be considered. You will be notified of the outcome and next steps.
Contacting Birmingham City Council Early Help and Safeguarding Services via CASS
The Children’s Advice and Support Service (CASS) provides a single point of contact for professionals and members of the public who want to access support or raise concerns about a child.
We want to keep all children and young people in Birmingham safe from harm. If you are concerned about a child please contact CASS who will listen, assess your concerns and can take action if a child is at risk.
Contact details
Monday to Thursday: 8:45am to 5:15pm
Friday: 8:45am to 4:15pm
Telephone: 0121 303 1888
Emergency out-of-hours
Telephone: 0121 675 4806
To report a concern about a child or to request support for a child or family – click here.
Useful Links
Concerned About A Child?
Click here for links to Children's Advice & Support Service (CASS), 'Children Heard & Seen' and more.
Community Connectors
Community Connectors sit within the Lead Voluntary Sector Organisation in each locality as part of the locality early help team. Their main role is to train professionals in each locality so that they can connect families to community support and assets.
Early Years Alliance
The Early Years Alliance is the largest and most representative early years membership organisation in England. A registered educational charity, they represent 14,000 members and support them to deliver care and learning to over 800,000 families every year.
EHSAAS Project – Perinatal Support for Pakistani Women
The ESHAAS Project is for Pakistani women to increase engagement into perinatal services and mental health services
Monthly Newsletters
Click here to find BFS Newsletters that highlight the good work Forward Steps staff and partners are doing across Birmingham.