HENRY Core Training for Practitioners

HENRY’s Core Training is for health, early years and family support practitioners who wish to develop their skills in supporting parents and their children at risk of health inequalities to develop a healthier lifestyle for the whole family.

What will I gain from the training?

The course adopts a holistic approach: it provides a practical framework for enabling behaviour change which brings together emotional wellbeing, parenting skills and information about all the things children need for a healthy childhood including routines, nutrition, physical activity, oral health and more.

By the end of the training you will:

• Be able to raise issues of lifestyle, weight and other emotive topics sensitively and effectively
• Be able to build parental motivation and readiness for behaviour change
• Understand the emotional dimension of change, the links between behaviour, feelings and needs and the power of empathy as a catalyst for change
• Adopt a partnership approach to work with families, using a strength-based and solution-focused approach to explore family lifestyle issues and support lifestyle behaviour change
• Understand the risk and protective factors for child obesity and the importance of early years
• Gain the knowledge, skills and confidence to provide effective support and information in relation to the 5 elements of a healthy start in life: parenting skills, eating and lifestyle habits, nutrition, physical activity and emotional wellbeing in the family
• Be able to provide clear messaging around healthy nutrition, physical activity and more for babies and children (consistent with national guidance) in a way that resonates with parents