NCC915 Home and Community Care for Children with Disabilities

The Council has a statutory duty to provide a variety of short breaks for children and young people with a level of assessed need who: ? have a disability and/or additional needs; ? are aged between 0-17 years; ? Live within the Northumberland boundary Short breaks are part of a continuum of services, which support disabled children and their families. They include the provision of day, evening and weekend support for the child or young person and can take place in the child\'s own home, the home of an approved carer or in a community setting. The Council funds targeted and preventative short break services to minimise the numbers of children and young people who require specialist interventions and to enable young people to live within their home community. These services may be delivered alongside other services as part of a joint package of support. These services are designed to: ? minimise the effect on disabled children within the area of their disabilities; ? give such children the opportunity to lead lives which are as normal as possible; ? assist individuals who provide care for such children to continue to do so, or to do so more effectively, by giving them breaks from caring.