Consultatiebureau, Decoded
For internationals mystified by the letters that keep arriving — what the consultatiebureau really is, visit by visit, from birth to four.
A few weeks after your baby is born, letters start arriving full of Dutch acronyms — JGZ, GGD, CJG, RVP — inviting you to appointments you never booked. It can feel like being tracked. It isn't. The consultatiebureau is a free, universal, preventive service that quietly looks after every child in the country, and it's genuinely on your side. This is a calm, plain-language walk-through: what each visit is for, what all those letters mean, how the appointments work, and the things newcomers most often misunderstand.
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Last updated: 23 July 2026
Those letters are good news
The consultatiebureau (child health clinic) is where the Netherlands keeps a gentle, preventive eye on every child from birth to age four — weighing, measuring, tracking development, and offering the national vaccinations. It's part of the JGZ (youth healthcare), it's completely free, and every family is enrolled automatically. You did nothing wrong and you're not being singled out; the same letters land on every doormat.
For newcomers it can read as government surveillance — a stranger wanting to inspect your baby. It really isn't that. Think of it as a free, expert second pair of eyes that's there to reassure you and to catch the rare thing early. You stay in charge: you can ask questions, decline parts, and the staff are used to explaining everything in English.
Your visits, birth to four
First week
The heel prick, at home
Soon after birth a midwife visits your home for the hielprik (heel-prick screening) — a few drops of blood that screen for a set of rare but treatable conditions. This happens before the clinic letters even start.
First ~2 weeks
Hearing test & first hello
A JGZ hearing screening (gehoorscreening) is done at home, and the youth nurse (jeugdverpleegkundige) drops by for an intake chat — how feeding and sleeping are going, how you are. Babies born during the RSV season may be offered an RSV injection around now; your clinic will tell you if it applies to your baby.
~4 weeks
First clinic visit
Your first visit to the consultatiebureau itself: weighing, measuring, a physical once-over and the first developmental check. No vaccinations yet — this one is about getting a baseline and answering your questions.
~2 & ~3 months
First vaccinations
The RVP series begins: rotavirus drops, the combination jab against diphtheria, whooping cough, tetanus, polio, Hib and hepatitis B (DKTP-Hib-HepB), and pneumococcal (Pneu). It's spread across two visits so it's gentler on your baby. Everything is offered, explained, and yours to accept or decline.
~5 & ~12 months
Growing and topping up
More weighing, measuring and development checks, plus the next doses of the same combination and pneumococcal vaccines. Around the first birthday you'll see the growth curves really taking shape in your Groeiboek.
~14 months
MMR & meningococcal
The BMR (MMR) vaccine against measles, mumps and rubella, together with the MenACWY vaccine against certain meningococcal infections. A big milestone visit, and a chatty age to bring along.
~18 months onward
The flexible phase
The fixed calendar gives way to appointments agreed between you and the professional — "we'll see each other when you or we feel it's useful." To parents used to a fixed pediatric schedule this can feel vague; it's normal, and you can always ask for a moment sooner.
~2.5–3.5 years
Second MMR
The second BMR (MMR) dose, recently moved earlier in the Dutch schedule so protection is complete sooner. Another development check to see how play, words and movement are coming along.
~3.5–4 years
Eyes, and ready for school
A vision test (oogtest) and a final check before your child starts basisschool at four. After this, youth healthcare continues through school-based JGZ rather than the consultatiebureau.
The letters, decoded
Four organisations, one child. They sound like separate systems but they're layers of the same thing: the public-health authority, the service it runs, the local front door, and the clinic you actually walk into.
Consultatiebureau
The clinic itselfThe everyday word for the physical child health clinic — and for the visits themselves. "We have consultatiebureau on Thursday" means you have an appointment. It's the friendly, human end of the whole system.
JGZ
Jeugdgezondheidszorg — youth healthcareThe statutory preventive health service for all children 0–18. The consultatiebureau is simply how JGZ works for the 0–4 age group. This is the service that has a legal duty to keep an eye on every child's health and development.
GGD
Gemeentelijke Gezondheidsdienst — municipal health serviceThe regional public-health authority behind the scenes. JGZ is one of its statutory tasks (in some regions it's run by a separate home-care organisation instead). In Leiden the relevant body is GGD Hollands Midden.
CJG
Centrum voor Jeugd en Gezin — Centre for Youth and FamilyThe local "front door" brand that bundles JGZ (and sometimes other family support) in many municipalities. In Leiden your invitations and rescheduling go through CJG Leiden — it's the name you'll see on most of the letters.
Groeiboek
Your child's growth recordThe little book you bring to every visit: appointments attended, vaccinations given, height and weight curves, and handy phone numbers. An English-language edition exists — ask for it at registration if you'd prefer it.
RVP
Rijksvaccinatieprogramma — national immunisation programThe government's free vaccination schedule offered through the clinic. Taking part is voluntary and strongly recommended, never compulsory — you decide, and the staff will talk you through what each one protects against.
Nurse vs. doctor
Jeugdverpleegkundige & jeugdartsThe jeugdverpleegkundige (youth nurse) does most visits and can come to your home — your main point of contact. The jeugdarts (youth doctor) is clinic-based and steps in for medical questions or when something needs a closer look. Both are part of the same JGZ team.
How it actually works
The mechanics are simpler than the letters make them look. Here's the day-to-day of getting invited, moving an appointment, and the question every newcomer asks — do we have to go? (These details are for Leiden / CJG Leiden; your own region's contact numbers may differ.)
Getting invited
- When you register your baby's birth at the gemeente (town hall), you're enrolled automatically — no form to hunt down
- The clinic then sends the invitation for your first appointment; you don't book it yourself
- Reminders usually arrive about two days before, by text and/or email
- Registered your child a non-standard way (e.g. via an embassy or with an expat municipal status)? You may need to contact your nearest clinic yourself rather than wait for a letter
Moving an appointment
- In Leiden, reach the Youth Health Service by phone on 088 254 23 84 or email kccafspraakeninfo@ggdhm.nl
- Phone lines are open Monday–Friday, 08:00–16:00
- Reschedule at least one day in advance where you can
- If your child is ill on the day, the advice is to postpone rather than come in
- You can also reach JGZ by phone or chat for questions between visits — you don't need an appointment to ask something
Is it mandatory?
- No — attendance is voluntary, and no legal penalty is attached to skipping a visit
- What is statutory is the clinic's duty to monitor every child's health, not your obligation to attend
- It's strongly advised in practice, because the checks catch the rare thing early and are genuinely reassuring
- You can decline any individual part — a vaccination, a measurement — and still keep coming for the rest
- Vaccinations too are offered, not required; participation is tracked as a public-health figure, not enforced
Not sure which clinic is yours? Search your municipality's name plus "consultatiebureau" or "CJG", or ask another parent at daycare — mentors and other families are used to helping newcomers find their local one.
What newcomers often get wrong
None of these are silly questions — the system is genuinely unfamiliar if you didn't grow up with it. Here are the ones that come up again and again.
"Can I ask questions between the visits?"
Absolutely — you don't have to save everything for the next appointment. JGZ has phone and chat lines for exactly this: sleep, feeding, a rash, a worry that's keeping you up. Asking early is encouraged, and it's free.
"We arrived halfway through — did we miss our slot?"
No. You simply join at your child's current age. Register with your nearest clinic (or contact them if no invitation arrives), bring whatever records you have, and they'll pick up the schedule from where your child is now. There's no penalty for starting late.
"Our vaccinations were done in another country."
Bring your child's vaccination record to your first visit. The clinic will compare it against the Dutch RVP schedule and work out a catch-up plan for anything missing — you don't restart from zero, and doses already given abroad usually count. If the record is in another language, bring it anyway; they'll help translate the essentials.
"Is this the government checking up on our parenting?"
It's a health-and-development service, not an inspection. The staff are there to support you, the visits are confidential, and you stay in charge of what happens. Most families come away reassured rather than judged — and the same universal service reaches every child, which is part of why Dutch child-health outcomes are so strong.
"Why does the calendar go vague after 18 months?"
By design. Once the early, closely-spaced checks are done, the visits shift to "when you or we feel it's useful." If you're used to a fixed pediatric schedule this can feel loose, but it just means the system trusts you to call — and you can always ask for a moment sooner.
Daycare and the consultatiebureau, side by side
These are two separate things that happen to point the same way: your child thriving. Daycare is care and daily life; the consultatiebureau is periodic health-and-development monitoring. They don't report to each other, but together they give your child two attentive sets of eyes — one that sees them every day, one that tracks the longer arc.
What mentors see, day to day
- How your child eats, sleeps, plays and settles across a whole week
- The small daily changes — a new word, a wobblier nap, a growth spurt
- How your child is doing with other children and new situations
- The everyday texture that a half-hour appointment can't capture
What the consultatiebureau tracks
- Growth curves, developmental milestones and vaccinations over time
- The periodic, structured check against national standards (Van Wiechen)
- The rare early signal that benefits from professional follow-up
- A confidential health record that travels with your child
Frequently asked questions
Does it really cost nothing?
Yes. The consultatiebureau, the JGZ checks and the RVP vaccinations are all free of charge — there's no bill and it isn't billed to your health insurance either. It's funded as a public service.
Will they speak English?
In and around Leiden, staff are used to international families and will generally switch to English. You can also request the English-language Groeiboek, and bring a partner or friend to translate if that helps you feel at ease.
What should I bring to a visit?
Your Groeiboek, any vaccination record from abroad, and a list of the questions on your mind. A spare set of clothes and a comforter for your child never hurts — undressing for weighing is part of most visits.
Do I have to vaccinate?
No — the RVP is offered and strongly recommended, but it's your choice, dose by dose. The staff will explain what each vaccine protects against and answer your questions without pressure. If you're unsure, you can start the conversation and decide later.
Can my partner come instead of me?
Of course — any parent or caregiver can bring the child, and partners are just as welcome. Many families alternate, or come together. The clinic simply wants a familiar grown-up there with your child.
What happens to all this after my child turns four?
Youth healthcare continues, but through school. Once your child starts basisschool, the same JGZ keeps offering periodic checks and the remaining vaccinations via the school route rather than the consultatiebureau. Your child's record carries over.
Useful links
Official sources for the schedule, the vaccinations and the local practicalities. Contact-moment ages and clinic details vary by region — for the authoritative list, always check your own CJG or GGD.
- CJG Leiden — contact moments, birth to four
- CJG Leiden — appointments & rescheduling
- Rijksvaccinatieprogramma — vaccination schedule (English)
- NCJ — about youth healthcare (JGZ)
- NCJ — the Van Wiechen developmental exam
- RIVM (KIDDI) — when a sick child should stay home from daycare
- Your own consultatiebureau — for anything specific to your child or region
- Your huisarts (GP) — for illness, medication and urgent medical questions
About this guide
This guide is for general information and describes the Dutch consultatiebureau and JGZ system as we understood it when it was written. The exact contact-moment ages, whether a moment is a home visit, a clinic visit or a phone call, and the vaccination schedule vary by region and change over time, so treat the timeline as typical rather than fixed and confirm the details with your own CJG or GGD. Teddy Kids is a daycare, independent of the JGZ — we don't run the clinic or receive its records. Anything about your child's health, development or vaccinations belongs with your consultatiebureau, jeugdarts or huisarts, who know your child and can advise you directly.
Teddy Kids is here for you
As your twins grow, we grow with you — with warm, bilingual childcare in Leiden.