Humber and North Yorkshire Keyworker Service

The Humber and North Yorkshire Keyworker Service supports children and young people with a learning disability and/or who are autistic, with the most complex needs and are inpatients in, or at risk of being admitted to, a mental health inpatient unit.

The Team

Our Keyworkers work with children and young people, and their families, to get the right support at the right time. They will make sure that all the local services work together to meet the needs of the children and young people in a holistic and joined-up way.

Our service has been developed as a response to the NHS England long term plan which includes a commitment that ‘by 2023/24 children and young people with a learning disability and/or who are autistic with the most complex needs will have a designated keyworker.’ Full details can be found on NHS England’s Children and Young People Keyworker webpage

Our Keyworkers will:

Act as the main point of contact for children and young people and their families
Aim to avoid unnecessary admission to, or facilitate discharge from, a mental health inpatient unit and help to strengthen links with relevant services.
Work on behalf of children and young people, and their families or carers, towards unblocking challenges and barriers.
Ensure all children and young people have a clear personalised plan to promote their development.
Ensure that Care Education and Treatment Review recommendations/ actions are completed in a timely manner and that these are reflected in the Dynamic Support Register.
Ensure continuity of care for the child/young person, working across systems and services to ensure they respond and react to child/young person’s needs as required.

Who can have a Keyworker?

To access a Keyworker the child or young person must:

Have a diagnosis of a learning disability, autism or both.
Be 0-25 years of age, although our primary focus is under 18s.
Have a potential risk of inpatient admission or are currently in hospital.
Be on the Dynamic Support Register (DSR). Priority Referrals are with those at Red & Amber and at crisis point. Those at Green currently do not receive an allocated Keyworker, however, may receive signposting or consultation.
Live in the geographical area of Humber and North Yorkshire which includes Hull, East Riding, North Lincolnshire, North East Lincolnshire, York, and North Yorkshire.

Our service flexible to meet individual needs:

We can arrange for an interpreter if you or your family need one.
Let us know if want or need information in a certain way and we will try to provide .

Our service is confidential. We will discuss with you who we share your information with. If we are concerned about the safety of a child or young person we have a duty to report this. We are committed to working with the Safeguarding Children’s Board Guidelines and the Principles of the Children Act 1989 (updated 2004).

We are delighted that Hull Parent Carer Forum have created a video about our service. Please see the video below:

How to Access this Service

Enquiries are welcomed from young people and their families, alongside queries from professionals.

The lead professional involved in the child or young person’s care can make a referral by completing the referral form and consent form this will be available on the Local Offer.