Healthy Child Programme: final report

Respondents were asked if they thought it was important to record whether children have the necessary social skills to start school. Of the 749 people who responded to the question, 76% felt it was important, 10% did not think it was important and 14% were not sure.

The following table shows the results, broken down by respondent group:

	Yes	No	Not sure	Total (N)
Parent / carer	67%	16%	17%	229
Health visitor	86%	4%	10%	119
Allied health professional	78%	5%	17%	58
Paediatrician	76%	11%	13%	54
Other nurse	79%	7%	14%	43
School nurse	90%	5%	5%	40
General practitioner	53%	27%	20%	30
Midwife	76%	12%	12%	25
Public health professional	86%	0%	14%	22
Early years practitioner	90%	0%	10%	21
Psychologist	100%	0%	0%	14
Informatician	50%	21%	29%	14
Other doctor	46%	15%	38%	13
Teacher	100%	0%	0%	5
Social care worker	100%	0%	0%	4
IT system supplier	67%	33%	0%	3
Psychiatrist	100%	0%	0%	1
Other	80%	4%	17%	54
Total (N)	567	74	108	749

The respondents who answered yes to this question were asked to record which skills they felt were particularly important. Thematic analysis of the qualitative responses identified the following commonly reported skills:

• Listening skills
• Communication skills
• Ability to dress/undress
• Ability to follow instructions
• Toilet trained