Transition from children’s to adults’ services

Adequate planning and smooth transition of healthcare services for children and young people approaching adulthood are important, particularly for those with long-term conditions. This chapter addresses young people's transition from children's to adults' healthcare services and focuses on transition for children and young people with cerebral palsy as an exemplar condition. Early planning for the transfer from children's to adults' services can lead to a better experience of transition for children and young people by allowing a more gradual process, in which children and young people have more time to be involved in decisions and more time to adjust to changes in their future care. The overarching principles of transition put the young person and their carer's at the heart of the process, aligning with the principles of person and family centred care that prevail in paediatric healthcare.