Improving Me is a pioneering Vanguard partnership between 27 NHS organisations across Cheshire and Merseyside. Together, they are aiming to transform neonatal, maternity, gynaecology and children's services.
To mark Fab Vanguard Week, they have launched a special video showcasing their incredible progress in their first year.
Watch: Improving Me, One Year On.
The Improving Me Vanguard has put the views and aspirations of families and children at the heart of their plans. Through collaboration and promoting innovation, they have inspired real change and introduced better approaches to support. Their achievements have included:
- Baby Boxes: Improving Me launched the first Baby Box programme in the North of the UK, becoming the first to offer the boxes to new mums across multiple boroughs and NHS Clinical Commissioning Groups.
The Baby Box tradition was first launched in Finland and has been credited with reducing infant mortality in the nation. The boxes contain a range of useful items for the baby's first year of life and give parents free access to Baby Box University, a maternal and childcare education platform.
- Widnes Vikings: The Vanguard has partnered with Widnes Vikings, the Super League rugby league club that is at the heart of the Halton community. The programme sees specialist community coaches and players from the club work with over 3000 children in Years 2 to 4, to embed nutrition and exercise into their daily curriculum.
- Personalisation: Liverpool Women's NHS Foundation Trust became the first pilot site for the roll out of Personal Maternity Care Budgets. The aspiration for this programme is to give mothers greater choice in antenatal care, place of birth and postnatal care.
Follow: @ImprovingMe1
Visit: http://www.improvingme.org.uk/