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Home > Conditions > Symptom checker > Unwell child

Unwell child

Information and helpful advice on children who are unwell.

When should you worry? 

When your child becomes unwell, it can be scary, especially when they are very young and cannot tell you what they are feeling. 

Thankfully, most illnesses in children are usually not serious and children recover quickly with simple measures you can do at home. 

Sometimes, it can be hard to pinpoint what is going on, especially in babies, when there might not be any obvious clues. 

Trust your instincts. You know your child better than anyone else. If you think they need more than self-care at home, you can contact 111, your GP or A&E. Those services can assess your child and provide advice on the care your child needs. This may be via telephone, video consult or face-to-face.

This guidance below can help you decide when you should get help. It is based on how your child looks (appearance) and acts (behaviour) together with other features that may indicate a serious problem. 

Any of the features in the red box should alert you to take your child to A&E straight away or call 999. 

Check through the red signs. If you can identify something that is different (like tummy pain or they feel hot) you can use the Symptom Checker to get advice or call 111. 

If your child does not have any of the features in the black or red boxes, then you have some time as it is unlikely to be an emergency. You support them at home at this time. Make sure they are getting plenty of fluids and treat any fever or pain with paracetamol. Your local pharmacy, Walk-in Centre, 111 or GP can give you further advice. 

You can screenshot the boxes on this page or print a copy and keep it handy to refer to if your child’s condition does not improve. 

When should I worry and what should I do?

Important advice:

Call 999 or go to A&E now if your child is/has:

  • Pale, mottled or has abnormally cold hands or feet
  • Collapsed / unresponsive / unconscious or difficult to wake/ lethargic or confused
  • No obvious pulse or heartbeat
  • A severe allergic reaction
  • Blue around the lips
  • Sleepiness (can be woken but falls asleep immediately)
  • Very agitated and restless and you cannot settle them with cuddles, toys, TV or food
  • Seizure / jerking movements/ fit
  • They remain drowsy (sleepy) or very agitated even when they do not have a fever
  • Not breathing
  • Sucking in and out between ribs
  • Using their neck muscles when breathing
  • Flaring nostrils
  • Extremely fast breathing
  • Noisy breathing such as grunting or stridor
  • Too breathless to talk or feed
  • Has long pauses in their breathing (more than 10 seconds)
  • Bleeding from an injury that doesn’t stop after 10 minutes of pressure
  • If your child has a fit or convulsion, then you should call 999 or bring them to the A&E Department
  • Has testicular pain, especially in teenage boys
Important advice:

Call 111 or ask for an urgent GP appointment if your child:

  • Dizziness / feeling faint
  • Develops a rash that does not fade with pressure (Glass test)
  • Severe constant tummy pain
  • Baby won’t feed or take a bottle
  • Baby’s nappy has been dry for 12 hours
  • Has been burned
  • Possible broken bone – an injury causing reduced movement of arms or legs or unable to walk
  • A head injury causing drowsiness or persistent crying
  • Swallowed foreign objects (especially magnets or batteries).
  • Temperature higher than 38 in a baby younger than three months old
  • Your child has special healthcare needs, and you have a plan that tells you to go to A&E
  • Feels abnormally cold to touch
  • Suicidal thoughts or self-harming – if your child is expressing suicidal thoughts or is harming themselves, call our free 24/7 Crisis Care Line 0151 293 3577 & 0808 196 3550 or email [email protected] 
    • If you cannot keep your child safe at this moment, go to A&E
    • Call the Police if there is immediate danger to your child, yourself, or others
Information:

You can also contact your nearest Walk-in Centre.

Important advice:

If none of the above features are present:

  • All GPs will have plans for assessing unwell children. Your GP will decide if your child should have a telephone, video, or face-to-face appointment
  • You can do lots of things online, like ordering repeat prescriptions. If you don’t have online services but would like to use them, visit your GP practice website for details on how to set this up
  • You can visit www.111.nhs.uk for advice at any time – only call NHS 111 if you need urgent help and your GP is closed (out of hours), or if you can’t get the advice you need online
  • Liverpool’s walk-in centres are open 8am to 8pm daily 

Where should you seek help?

  • If it is non-urgent, speak to your local pharmacist or health visitor.
  • Or contact you GP practice and a qualified member of the clinical team will assess if your child needs to be seen urgently.​​​​​​ For an urgent out-of-hours GP appointment, call NHS 111.
  • You should only call 999 or go your nearest A&E department in critical or life threatening situations.
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