Meet Poppy, 25, from London. She is a public health officer for the London Borough of Hounslow.
Part of our Bitesize world of work series.
I've always looked after people, every single job that I've ever had has been taking care of people.
Hi. My name's Poppy. I'm a public health officer at Hounslow Council.
Mother of baby:
I was wondering if other people in the borough are like that like certain communities might like…
Poppy:
Public health is all about keeping people healthy and making services accessible for those who need them. You might be an academic advising the government or a school nurse.
I work in the children and young people team and we're looking to make sure that children are born healthily into happy families. My particular area is infant feeding, so I speak to mums in the borough about their experiences with breastfeeding or bottle feeding.
My role is to find the gaps in the public health services or issues that are arising in the borough.
We make sure we offer support and services to fill those gaps and to reduce those problems, for example we were seeing low levels of breastfeeding in the borough, so I was going out and speaking to mums and as a result we've had an increase in people accessing breastfeeding clinics, and we've had a new antenatal service provided.
I love that a lot of my work includes community development and I can work quite closely with those who benefit from the services I help to commission, so I can see over quite a short time, how my work is helping people.
So I always wanted to do Art, I actually wanted to be a tattoo artist when I was a teenager, so when it came to choosing my GCSEs I chose creative subjects like Art, Music and Textiles.
I decided then that I wanted to have the option of a securer career for A-levels, so I chose Art, but I also did English Language and Biology as well to give me writing and scientific skills.
I've always looked after people. Every single job that I've had has been taking care of people. I've been babysitting since the age of 15, and my first job was being a carer for elderly and disabled people.
I decided to do a degree in Midwifery at the University of West London, but the shift work wasn't really for me, so I switched to a degree in Public Health. I then went on to do a master's in Public Health and Wellbeing.
(to young baby) Well done Niamh.
I really wanted to work in public health at a local authority as I have an interest in politics and I wanted to be part of local government decision making.
My midwifery studies meant that I also had an understanding about the challenges new mothers face and I was keen to work with children and young people, although public health does cover all ages.
I signed up to Hounslow council's job notification service and I applied and got an interview. I actually thought that I'd done really badly in the interview so when she called me later that day and said I'd got the job I was so chuffed.
Kelly, employer:
Hello. Hi, how are you? I'm good, thank you. Just wanted to ask you how…
Poppy has real compassion, prior to working in public health she spent a year working as a carer with people who have disabilities and the elderly. This is a really solid foundation for a career in public health because she demonstrates that she wants to make a difference to people's lives.
Poppy:
I care about people and their health, but I knew I didn't want to work in a hospital or a healthcare centre, I wanted to be a bit more broad and this job allows for that.
It was not a requirement for the job, but the skills I learnt on my master's degree and in my previous job help me to interpret data better, so I can make the best choices for the people in our borough.
I wish I had known that you can still end up with a really great job that you love even if you end up picking things that didn't actually take you down the path you wanted. I think, knowing that there are lots of options ahead is really important.
My top tip is to find your niche. Find your interests and work out what it is that you're really into kind of hone in on that. Of course, you don't want to put yourself in a box, but if you've got an interest, follow that interest.
- Poppy is a public health official in a local authority in London. Public health involves keeping people healthy and making services accessible for people who need them
- The main skills she uses in her role include project management, problem solving, data handling and management, contract management, soft communication skills and admin/finance skills
- She did GCSEs in Art, Music, and Textiles, as well as A-levels in Art, English Language and Biology which helped her to build writing and scientific skills
- She went to university to study midwifery but didn’t enjoy it and switched to public health. After her degree, she completed a masters in Public Health and Wellbeing
- Her particular area of focus is infant feeding, where she speaks to women in the borough about their experiences with breastfeeding or bottle feeding.
Top tips
- Find your niche and interests
- Focus on what you want to do
- Don't put yourself in a box and consider all opportunities.
A public health official can also be known as a health promotion specialist. Health promotion specialists educate and inform people about health issues.
What to expect if you want to be a health promotion specialist
- Health promotion specialist average salary: £25,000 to £35,000 per year
- Health promotion specialist typical working hours: 38 to 40 hours per week
What qualifications do you need to be a health promotion specialist?
You could get into this role via a university course, a college course, an apprenticeship, working towards the role or applying directly.
Sources: National Careers Service
This information is a guide and is constantly changing. Please check the National Careers Service website for the latest information and all the qualifications needed.
For careers advice in all parts of the UK visit: National Careers Service (England), nidirect (Northern Ireland), My World of Work (Scotland) and Careers Wales (Wales).
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