Becoming an NHS Band 6 Health Visitor is a rewarding step in a public health nurse’s career. This role plays a crucial part in supporting children aged 0–5 and their families by promoting health, preventing illness, and reducing inequalities across communities. Health visitors provide a vital link between health and social care, often working independently in homes, clinics, and community settings.
As a Band 6 position, the role comes with increased responsibility and expectations, including safeguarding leadership, multi-agency collaboration, and team support. The average Band 6 Health Visitor salary in the UK (as of 2025) ranges from £35,392 to £42,618 per annum, depending on experience and location, in line with the NHS Agenda for Change pay scale.
To help you succeed in your upcoming interview, we’ve compiled 20 common Band 6 Health Visitor interview questions, complete with suggested answers, tailored to reflect the expectations of this key role.
Tell us about your experience as a Health Visitor.
Answer: Highlight years of service, community settings worked in, client populations, and any specialist training such as safeguarding, infant mental health, or breastfeeding support.
What makes you suitable for a Band 6 role?
Answer: Emphasise leadership qualities, autonomous decision-making, safeguarding expertise, and experience mentoring or supervising junior staff or students.
How do you manage complex safeguarding cases?
Answer: Describe a methodical approach including multi-agency liaison, documentation, escalating concerns appropriately, and staying updated with local safeguarding procedures.
What’s your approach to delivering the Healthy Child Programme?
Answer: Show awareness of its components and how you tailor your health promotion advice during universal, targeted, or intensive contacts.
How do you handle a non-engaging family?
Answer: Reflect on strategies like building trust, motivational interviewing, visiting at different times, and escalating non-engagement per local protocols.
How do you prioritise caseloads?
Answer: Mention using clinical judgment, risk assessments, safeguarding levels, and partnership working to triage and plan visits effectively.
Give an example of when you dealt with a mental health concern in a parent.
Answer: Provide a real example, describe your communication and risk assessment approach, signposting, and multi-agency involvement.
Describe your understanding of perinatal mental health.
Answer: Explain symptoms, screening tools like EPDS, referral pathways, and your role in supporting maternal mental health.
What would you do if a colleague disclosed a concern about their practice?
Answer: Explain your responsibility to escalate to a line manager or safeguarding lead and document the concern while supporting the colleague appropriately.
How do you ensure cultural sensitivity in your practice?
Answer: Discuss respecting family beliefs, using interpreters, and adapting health promotion messages to be inclusive and non-judgmental.
How do you stay current with professional development?
Answer: Mention CPD activities, clinical supervision, research reading, and attending safeguarding or public health updates.
How would you support a newly qualified nurse on your team?
Answer: Talk about mentoring, shadowing opportunities, feedback, creating learning goals, and promoting reflective practice.
How do you approach record-keeping?
Answer: Emphasise accuracy, confidentiality, timely documentation, using appropriate electronic systems, and professional standards.
What would you do if you missed a safeguarding concern in hindsight?
Answer: Be honest—discuss reflection, supervision, learning, and implementing changes to practice to avoid future occurrences.
Tell us about a time you led a multi-agency meeting.
Answer: Detail the purpose, your role in facilitating discussion, managing conflict, and achieving an action plan.
What’s your approach to lone working safety?
Answer: Discuss your adherence to risk assessments, check-in systems, alert procedures, and personal safety planning.
How would you manage a parent who refuses vaccinations for their child?
Answer: Respect their views, provide evidence-based information, explore concerns, and document the discussion thoroughly.
What public health issues are most relevant in your area?
Answer: Tailor this to your locality—mention obesity, breastfeeding rates, immunisation uptake, or poverty, linking to how you address these.
How do you manage stress in a demanding role?
Answer: Share self-care techniques, time management, using supervision, and peer support to maintain wellbeing and resilience.
Where do you see yourself in five years?
Answer: Show ambition while staying within the framework of community health—mention leadership roles, specialist training, or advanced practice aspirations.
Final Thoughts and Interview Tips
Preparation is key to succeeding in an NHS Band 6 Health Visitor interview. Practice delivering your answers confidently and link responses to the six C’s of nursing: care, compassion, competence, communication, courage, and commitment. Use the STAR method (Situation, Task, Action, Result) when giving examples to ensure structure and impact.
Remember, interviewers want to see evidence of leadership, initiative, empathy, and your dedication to improving child and family health outcomes. You’ve already done the hard work to reach this stage—now it’s time to showcase your strengths and step into the next level of your career.
Good luck—you’ve got this!
