2½ - 5-years

A nutritious and varied diet, child-sized portions of food, active play and sleep can all help your child to grow well and start school happy, healthy and ready to learn.

Why is it important?

For many reasons families can find it difficult to access the things they need for their child to grow well and start school at a healthy weight. In Hackney, our aim is to make it easier to access affordable healthy food and for children to have the opportunity to walk, run and play safely at nursery, school and where they live.

First point of contact

If you have concerns about your child’s weight the best person to talk to is your GP. Alternatively you could contact:

Best Start with HENRY service
07519109876
hcsupport@henry.org.uk

Local services

School entry health assessments

When children are still growing it can be hard to tell if they are above or below a healthy weight. In Hackney, many free services are available to assess and support your child’s growth and development throughout their childhood.

When your child is aged 4-5 years, the school nursing service offers height and weight checks, alongside vision and hearing assessments in your child’s school. These checks are carried out by fully trained NHS practitioners, they are designed to identify any problems which may affect your child's health and wellbeing so that early help can be provided. 

Cooking classes for families

Free school meals

Parenting and mental health support

National resources

Preparing for school

Healthy Weight

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This page was last modified on: 29 Jul 2024
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