Short breaks

Support for children and young people to underpin their social care needs.

Here you will find Northumberland’s short break statement and information about the short break service including how to access it.

What are short breaks

Some children and young people will need support for their social care needs to be met through short break services.

Short break services give children and young people time away from their family to enjoy fun activities and new experiences, as well as make new friendships. Short breaks also give children and young people an opportunity to learn new skills and increase their independence.

Short breaks can also give parents/full-time carers of disabled children and young people a break from their caring role. This time can also enable siblings to get to spend quality time with their parents or carers either at home or by doing an activity they enjoy.

Short Break Services

Who provides short breaks?

Short breaks can be provided in different ways. Some short breaks are offered by a registered provider, services within the council or through voluntary organisations.

Some families may prefer to organise their own support and can get in touch with us to organise direct payments, where money is paid directly to them by the council, so they can organise and pay for support themselves. The council can provide support in this process which may feel daunting at first.

Short breaks can be provided in different ways and could involve:

Play and activity schemes
Additional support so a child or young person can join in with a club or recreational activity in their community
Someone caring for a child within their own home or the child’s home
Extra support for the disabled child alongside family leisure and social activities
Overnight short break care

How do I access short breaks?

If you feel your child may benefit from accessing short breaks then a referral can be made to the First Contact Team on 01670 536 400.

A Child and Family Assessment would need to be carried out by a Social Worker to look more closely at the needs of your child and the rest of your family. A Child and Family Assessment is usually needed when your child's social care needs cannot be met through universal or targeted services.

What if my child does not need to access specialist short-break provision?

Not all families need specialist short break provision and may find universal or targeted services, e.g., after-school clubs, holiday schemes and youth clubs, are able to meet their needs. For more information on activities and things to do click here.

You and your family may benefit from having a MAX card.

The Max Card is the UK’s leading discount card for SEND and Looked After Children. Families can use their Max Card at venues across the UK to get free or discounted admission.

Visit www.mymaxcard.co.uk to find your local distributor in the Northumberland.

Short break statement

We are currently revising the Northumberland short break statement and will make a copy of it available here as soon as possible.

If you have any questions about accessing short break services, please get in touch with the First Contact team on 01670 536 400.

Short break survey

In 2021, we asked disabled children and their families for their views on ‘short breaks’ as part of Northumberland County Council’s review into the support offer.

We would like to thank everyone who took part in this survey.

The results, reports and recommendations that have come from the short breaks survey can be found here and in the video below.