New birth visit

Your health visitor will contact you to arrange an appointment when your baby is between 10-14 days old for a new birth visit. 

This is when your midwife will normally hand over care of you and your baby to your Health Visitor.

At this visit your health visitor will: 

• Ask how you are feeling emotionally following the birth of your baby 
• Check if you have any concerns about your health or your partner's health
• Tell you about the immunisations your baby needs
• Vaccines -are they safe for my baby 
• Discuss and support feeding your baby

You will receive your baby’s child health record (red book) from the midwife. This is your book that you keep on behalf of your child and your Health Visitor will show you how to use it as a record of how your child is growing. It also contains information about immunisations and a guide to key developmental milestones. 

In addition to your child health record you can have a digital version. With eRedbook you can keep track of your child's health, be reminded of upcoming immunisations/ developmental reviews due, keep track of your child's development and read interesting articles about their development. The eRedbok can be accessed from a mobile phone, computer or laptop.

For more information and to register visit: https://www.eredbook.org.uk

Once you have registered please contact your health visiting team to have your registration vouched for.

You will also be given information about your nearest Children Centre and other local community services you may find useful.