Help & Advice

What is NHS Pharmacy First?

The Pharmacy First scheme is an NHS initiative designed to offer professional healthcare advice and, treatment for 7 common illnesses through your local pharmacy.

NHS Pharmacy First is an England-only service providing professional healthcare advice and, if appropriate, treatment for 7 common illnesses at community pharmacies.

https://youtu.be/xqTgad2t4Mw

 

Treatment from a pharmacist

Pharmacists can suggest treatments that do not need a prescription for a range of conditions.

Most pharmacies can also offer prescription medicine for some conditions, without you needing to see a GP or make an appointment. This is called Pharmacy First.

Conditions they can offer prescription medicine for are:

• impetigo (aged 1 year and over)
• infected insect bites (aged 1 year and over)
• earache (aged 1 to 17 years)
• sore throat (aged 5 years and over)
• sinusitis (aged 12 years and over)
• urinary tract infections (UTIs) (women aged 16 to 64 years)
• shingles (aged 18 years and over)

If you are not within these age ranges, a pharmacist can still offer advice and support decisions about self care treatment with over the counter medicines, but you may need to see a GP for treatment.

If you go to a pharmacy with one of these conditions, the pharmacist will offer you advice, treatment or refer you to a GP or other health professional if needed. They will also update your GP health record, but your information will not be shared with anyone else.

Most pharmacies can provide prescription medicine for these conditions but contact them before visiting to check.

Courses

If you would like to attend any of these courses but would like some company - just call me (Miss White) and I can come along with you or introduce you to other parents who might be interested in attending too.

Help with domestic abuse

 

Early Help referrals and School Nurse referrals

Virtual Youth Offer – Online Youth Services for Young People

Kent commissions seven independent providers to deliver open access youth services across twelve districts of Kent for young people aged 8-19 (up to 25 for young people with learning difficulties and disabilities). Following the start of the Covid crisis, all of these providers have been developing their own virtual youth offers to replace what would they would normally deliver face to face.

Each provider’s offer differs and may vary from week to week, but they all seek to offer a number of open access online group activities via social media or other platforms, including sessions based around music, physical activity and emotional wellbeing. Sessions offered can be live and interactive or pre-recorded for young people to dip in and out of as they choose. Crucially, each provider also makes youth staff available to chat, either with other young people in a group or on a one to one basis;  giving support, advice and guidance as appropriate, but often simply being a familiar or welcoming face for young people to talk to.

Young people are not limited to accessing sessions delivered by their local provider – they can choose to join in with sessions in other areas if these appeal to them more. The whole offer is subject to ongoing development and is explained on our page “Online Youth Services” which contains links for each provider and can be found here: https://www.kent.gov.uk/education-and-children/young-people/online-youth-services

Additional Resources for Young People and Families

We would also like to remind you that there are a number of additional services commissioned by our public health and other colleagues that can be of real benefit to young people and their families at this time. Further details on these services specific to young people are being maintained by our Headstart colleagues on Kelsi and can be found by clicking here . Services detailed on this link include:

Kooth (https://www.kooth.com/) - a supportive space for young people who are missing their friends and need to talk. It includes discussion boards, Kooth Magazine & Help Articles, free counselling and self-help tools.

Moodspark: (https://moodspark.org.uk/) - A place where young people aged 10-16 can learn how to look after their emotional and mental health and find ways to help them bounce back when life gets tough

Other sites and services that may be particularly relevant to young people and their families include:

Kent Resilience Hub (https://kentresiliencehub.org.uk/) - a resource that helps young people, parents and carers and professionals to understand emotional growth and resilience. This is shortly to be updated with a wide range of emotional wellbeing support resources for young people

Sexual Health Service (https://www.kent.gov.uk/social-care-and-health/health/sexual-health) – information on the local service offer - including online STI testing – which is still live and accessible Kent wide. Information for the general public about what to do on contraception, emergency contraception, abortion, sexually transmitted infections, HIV and sexual assault during Covid-19 is on Sexwise . This includes links to other organisations providing information and support.

Mental Health Resources and Support for Parents and Carers (www.kent.gov.uk/wellbeing)

School Health  (https://www.kentcht.nhs.uk/service/school-health) – a range of emotional and physical health resources and details of how to get support for school age children and young people – regardless of whether or not they are in school.

One You Kent (https://www.kent.gov.uk/social-care-and-health/health/one-you-kent) – a range of links and resources around improving physical and mental health.

Second-hand uniform recycling shop

We have been donated some lovely uniform if you are in need of any garments for your child/ren please come to the shelters in the playground or the school hall at 3.05 -3.25pm on the last Thursday of each term.  The uniform is free!

Also, if you have any good quality, clean uniform that your child has outgrown please bring it in and we will happily recycle it to our lovely school community. It's so wonderful that we can all work together to help each other and avoid having to buy uniform when we have some to share.

Kind regards

Miss White