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Transition to adult services

Many children and young people now survive into adult life with complex conditions that previously would have been fatal in infancy.

The publications below discuss how the handover from young people’s to adult services should be planned and managed.

Transition: moving on well

Good practice guide

A good practice guide on effective transition from children's to adult services, for young people with complex health needs, has been published by the Department of Health and the Department for Children, Schools and Families.

The guide will help ensure that young people and their families are better prepared for the move to adult care, and that the appropriate adult care team has been involved in planning for the transfer.

Transition: getting it right for young people

The good practice guide, published in March 2006, aims to show that the handover from children's and young people's services to adult services should be planned and managed as a process. The guide suggests how this can best be accomplished.

A film about getting transition services right

What do young people with a long-term health condition want from healthcare services? Five young people (Greg, Toyah, Craig, AJ and Chris) have their say, with a challenge to all professionals to do better. This film will help kick off conferences, meetings and also help to plan better transition services. To order a copy of the DVD, email:

Growing up ready

A literature review of the available data for transition from paediatric to adult health services.

Additional resources

Additional resources to support services development for transition for young people with long term health conditions.

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