Short Break Services

Overarching Vision For Community Short Breaks

For all children and young people, regardless of age or need, to be able to take part in activities and opportunities with their friends and family in their local community during school holidays, weekends and after school.

Community short breaks refers to support given, and measures taken, to ensure that all, regardless of need, are able to access opportunities that interest them.

It does not refer to support within the home or overnight respite.

The purpose of community short breaks are to:

enable carers to continue to provide care
enable carers to provide care more effectively
enable children with disabilities and additional needs to be able to do more things where they live, join in, make friends and achieve their potential
promote independence and development

There are several commissioned services within Newcastle that can offer support to Children and Young People with additional needs without the need for a Social Worker or a needs assessment, these include:

Disabled Children's Register
MAX Card (and or DLA offer letter) which gives you access to various offers at many national and local venues
Activities SEND Local Offer for children and families and children with Special Educational Needs (SEND) in Newcastle.
Newcastle Carer’s who provide support for parent carers including a carers grant
The Family Advice and Support Team works with parents and carers of children and young people with Special educational Needs and Disabilities. They also work with other organisations to provide coordinated support to families. The team supports the Pass it on Parents Facebook group, and includes Family Advice Workers and project workers working together to provide co-ordinated support for families.
Access fund is a grant to help disabled children and young people to participate in activities in their local community. This can be any daytime, evening or weekend activity that the child or young person enjoys whilst their parent/carer has a break from caring. The Access Fund seeks to support children and young
people to take part in inclusive activities alongside their non-disabled peers. For further enquiries, you can email accessfund@footsteps.me.uk.
Bus pass and companion card
CEA card which can be used at certain cinemas
SEND Information, Advice and Support Service (IASS) specialise in education matters but can support with social care and health issues that impact on the child or young person’s ability to access education. You can contact them by calling 0191 211 6255 or emailing sendiassadmin@newcastle.gov.uk
Skills for People Adults Team can help with practical things like finding housing, accessing benefits, legal issues and navigating health and care systems. They have lots of social groups and other support for over 18’s who have a learning disability or autism. Upcoming group sessions can be found in the monthly groups newsletter shared on the Skills for People Facebook page.

Types of provision

Provision falls into three broad categories:

Short breaks for parents and carers of children with disabilities.
Information, advice and support for children and their families.
Improved access to community activities comparable to their non disabled friends.

Where the child or young people’s needs cannot be met via universal and targeted services, highlighted above, the Family Help Additional Support Needs team may undertake assessments of need to consider support through a Social Care Personal Budget where the child has a complex disabilities and unmet needs.

Short breaks for children with complex health needs may be joint funded by the Local Authority and N.H.S. when the child meets Children’s Continuing Care criteria. The child with complex needs panels considers joint funding arrangements.

Short Breaks available cover a range of services, organisations, providers across the voluntary, public and private sector. This diverse support reflects the needs of children and young people with additional needs. We recognise that service provision is subject to change, so the below list is not exhaustive but moreover provides a view around some of the opportunities and services available around short breaks.

Small Grants
Family support in the home.
Individual one to one support in the community or in the home.
Peer to peer mentoring, to support with developing independence skills and providing support to access the community.
Out of School activities during the week and weekends both inclusive and specialists.
Overnight Short Breaks.
Max Cards.

Queries and questions

Short break provision and commissioned services in line with the short breaks offer are updated regularly and can be viewed on the community short breaks page of the SEND Local Offer.

Questions and queries in relation to the short breaks offer can be directed to the Family Help Additional Support Needs team on 0191 277 2500 or completing an enquiry form. Office hours are between 9am and 5pm Monday to Friday.