Homeless health visitor? Guys pls respond, I will go mad!!

[Queenxxx]

Hey I'd really appreciate your guy's advice. I've recently become homeless and I'm in temporary accommodation right now. I've received a letter saying that the 'homeless families health visitor' would like to visit me and my kids because they have been told that we are in temporary accommodation. This has unnerved me abit. This is the last thing I wanted for my kids (to be in temporary accommodation) and they are beyond loved and cared for. Am I being judged for my situation? Do they think I'm a bad parent? I've got really bad anxiety and my worst fear is my kids being taken from me. I'm overthinking so much right now. I've missed a few of their appointments, could it be because of that? Why do my kids need a 'visit'? It's obviously because they think we need it for some reason. Or maybe I'm just overthinking too much. Guys please respond or I will drive myself crazy😭

Surely it is to advocate for you and help you access support if needed.

Sure it's to offer you support, sounds like a tough situation.

Hope things pick up for you all soon.

I would see them willingly and take any and all help that they can offer you.

Also, try not to miss appointments. Realise it can be hard to organise but they are there for a reason.

Ah op no don't panic at all! I'd see that as a good thing that you'll have a health visitor who is actually informed on the difficulties with being homeless and they can support you better as a result. It could be simple things like having a child with additional needs in temporary accommodation and needing a letter of support for the housing. Or struggling to get them to school because you've been allocated housing really far from where they've enrolled. Same for accessing a gp and dentist and all that stuff. They're not there to judge you, they're there to make sure your family gets the support you deserve and don't fall through the cracks in services just because you're currently waiting for housing .

I think you need to let them visit, and see for themselves what a good job you are doing. They are health visitors not social workers, however they will probably be on the lookout for any safeguarding concerns. (Make sure they are washed, hair clean and tidy and dressed appropriately). Just be completely honest about your situation and how you found yourselves there.

Once they know the children are safe and well looked after, their priority will be helping you and ensuring you know how to access support available to you.

Hi, please don’t worry. I actually know someone who works as a homeless health visitor and they are absolutely not out to get you or trip you up in anyway.

Families living in temp accommodation often face higher health risks than others due to things like it being difficult to access the GP, possibly unsafe sleeping arrangements, poor quality accommodation etc. A homeless health visitor will want to check on these sorts of things to see if they can help - it’s not about your kids being at risk of being taken away.

They are coming to see what they can offer in terms of support. They will want to make sure that you are able to register with a gp, see if you or your children need any health care like immunisations, repeat prescriptions, referrals for anything, whether you need a foodbank referral or support claiming benefits and so on. So many things in life can become difficult if you don't have a permanent address.

I don't have any advice but I want to say that I'm so sorry that you're in this situation , I cant imagine how hard it is for you. Stay strong, I hope that things look up for you soon 🙏