Other areas of work
The Aiming High for Disabled Children programme is the Government's transformation programme for disabled children's services in England. This page provides information and updates on areas other than those which have a dedicated page on this website.
Therapy services
The Government wants all disabled children to be able to access the therapy services that they need. Improving therapy services is essential to the delivery of Standard 8 of the National Service Framework for Children.
The Government has published Better
Communication: An Action Plan to Improve Services for Children and Young
People with Speech, Language and Communication Needs in response to the Bercow
Review of services for children and young people with speech, language and
communication needs (SLCN).
The Action Plan provides details of a range of initiatives across Government to
improve services for children and young people with SLCN culminating in that
National Year of Speech, Language and Communication in 2011-12. This
includes:
- Up to 20 local area pathfinders will be used to develop good practice guidance and a supplemental joint commissioning framework on SLCN
- Up to £1.5m will be invested in grants to the alternative and augmentative communication sector
- Up to £1.5m will be invested in a research programme looking at SLCN over the next three years
For more information, visit the SLCN web pages.
Community equipment and wheelchair services
The Transforming Community Equipment & Wheelchair Services programme will update the system for providing community equipment and wheelchairs for adults and children. Cheshire County Council is currently testing the community equipment model for children. Further information on the programme will be published later in 2008.
Key working
Families with disabled children with complex needs require a single point of contact to provide information, to help obtain services and to assist with advocacy. Studies of key workers consistently report positive effects on relationships with services, fewer unmet needs and greater family well-being.
Key worker services should be provided in line with guidance in Together from the Start and the endorsed key worker standards developed by Care Co-ordination Network UK.
Individual Budgets
As part of the AHDC programme, the DCSF commissioned a scoping study to inform the development of the Individual Budgets (IB) pilot programme. The results were published on 30 October 2008 in the Individual Budgets (IB) for Families with Disabled Children scoping report.
The IB pilot programme will aim to establish if IB are a viable and better alternative to traditional forms of service for some or all families with disabled children. They will also help identify the demand and benefits of IB in their application and explore the financial impact of introducing IB to families with disabled children.
The IB pilots will be designed around:
- A common delivery model
- An offer of an IB to a target number of families with disabled children
The DCSF have invited a number of local authorities, with their PCT partners
to express an interest in becoming an individual budget pilot area.
For more information, email the AHDC
Implementation team.
Direct payments
Direct payments are cash payments in lieu of social services. Following implementation of the Health and Social Care Act 2001, direct payments must be offered to parents of disabled children, giving them greater choice and flexibility in how they receive services.
Information, advice and guidance
Direct
Payments
This set of documents includes: Direct Payments guidance; Parents guide to
Direct Payments; Direct Payments FAQs
Safeguarding
disabled children
The available UK evidence suggests that disabled children are at an increased
risk of abuse and neglect than non-disabled children. This resource, for
local safeguarding children boards and practitioners, sets out guidelines
for understanding the particular needs of disabled children and considering how
best to safeguard and promote their welfare.
Residential
placements
There are around 13,300 disabled children in long-term residential placements,
mainly in special schools, children's homes and hospitals. This report
provides the most comprehensive picture yet of disabled children in residential
placements, drawing on education, health and social-care data.
This page was last updated on 17 December 2008
