‘We are deeply concerned’
Health visitors working for the health board have been on strike since February(Image: WalesOnline/Rob Browne)
Councillors in Merthyr Tydfil have called for an urgent resolution to the health visitor strike at the local health board.
A notice of motion submitted to full council on Wednesday, September 30, by the Labour group and agreed to by councillors said it stands in solidarity with the health visitors at Cwm Taf Morgannwg Health Board who are members of Unite the Union and calls for the immediate resolution of the ongoing dispute.
Industrial action involving health visitors at Cwm Taf Morgannwg Health Board, has been going on since February.
Health visitors in the region, who meet with families on regular visits from birth to three and a half years, have said they are only being paid as band six workers despite internal job grading now matching them as a band seven which is a difference of up to £9,000.
Despite the Welsh Government instructing the health board to honour the job evaluation process they are yet to do so.
The motion says: “Health visiting is a vital preventative public health service for babies, children and families. Health visitors play a crucial role in early intervention, identifying health and developmental needs, supporting parenting and families, safeguarding children and reducing health inequalities.
“We are deeply concerned about the impact of the ongoing dispute and wider workforce pressures on the delivery of health visiting services across the Cwm Taf Morgannwg University Health Board area, covering Merthyr Tydfil, Rhondda Cynon Taf and Bridgend.”
The motion says information obtained through a freedom of information request demonstrates a significant change in the delivery of Health Child Wales contacts.
It says that in March, April and May 2025, 6,140 Health Child Wales contacts were completed and in the corresponding three months of 2026, the number of contacts recorded as completed by band six health visitors was 909, against 23,592 contacts identified as due during that period.
The motion says: “The Labour group recognises that there may be several factors contributing to this position and does not seek to attribute causation without full evidence. However, the scale of the gap requires urgent assurance from the health board about how health visiting functions are being discharged and how unmet need is being identified and addressed.
“The potential consequences of reduced health visiting provision are significant. Health visiting is an essential part of the preventative health and social care system and supports:
- early identification of health and developmental needs
- safeguarding and the identification of children at risk
- prevention and early intervention
- support for new parents and families
- tackling health inequalities
- effective partnership working between health visiting, local authority social services, and other services supporting children and families.
At present the early help hub is triaging cases and offering support where they can in response to the health visiting strike.
Children’s services are also linking with the health board colleagues about this issue and Cwm Taf Morgannwg safeguarding board is monitoring the situation.
The motion says: “Children and families should not bear the consequences of an unresolved workforce dispute or wider workforce capacity pressures.
“Health visiting is not simply an employment issue. It is a fundamental part of our preventative public health infrastructure. Where an essential service is not being delivered at the level required, the response must be urgent, properly resourced and focused on protecting children, families and communities. “
The motion encourages the council to express its full solidarity with health visitors who are members of Unite the Union and supports their efforts to secure a fair and sustainable resolution to the ongoing dispute, raise serious concern about the significant gap between Health Child Wales contacts identified as due and those recorded as completed by band six health visitors across the Cwm Taf Morgannwg University Health Board area and call on Cwm Taf Morgannwg University Health Board to provide urgent assurance to Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Council, Bridgend County Borough Council and Rhondda Cynon Taf County Borough Council as to how health visiting functions are currently being discharged across the three local authority areas. Stay informed on everything Merthyr Tydfil by signing up to our newsletter here
It also encourages the council to call on the health board to set out how children and families who have not received scheduled health visiting contacts are being identified, assessed and followed up, including how any resulting unmet need is being addressed.
It encourages council to call on the chief executive of Cwm Taf Morgannwg University Health Board to urgently resolve the dispute with Unite the Union and ensure sufficient workforce capacity to restore the effective delivery of health visiting services.
And it encourages the council to call on the Welsh Government cabinet secretary for health and social care, to intervene immediately to support the resolution of the dispute and ensure that Cwm Taf Morgannwg University Health Board has the necessary resources and workforce capacity to discharge its health visiting responsibilities effectively
The motion also encourages council to call on Cwm Taf Morgannwg University Health Board to engage urgently with the three local authorities to understand the impact of reduced health visiting provision, including any implications for safeguarding, social care demand, early intervention and health inequalities.
It calls on the council to request that the leader of the council write to the Welsh Government cabinet secretary and chief executive of Cwm Taf Morgannwg University Health Board setting out these concerns and seeking an urgent response on the actions being taken to restore and sustain health visiting provision.
Councillor Geraint Thomas, leader of the opposition Independent group, said it is imperative that they have health workers in post and paid the proper money to carry out the function adding it’s so important that children have the best start to life.
Councillor Brent Carter, the Labour leader of the council, confirmed he would be more than happy to write on behalf of the full council.
