What we do

Worcestershire Short Breaks Project has been developed to enable children and young people with physical and/or learning disabilities aged up to 18 to:

• gain more experience of the local community
• take part in new activities
• meet new people.

We also aim to support parents by providing them with regular breaks. Although our office is based in Droitwich, we cover the whole of Worcestershire.

Short break care

Coping with the special needs of a disabled child can be very demanding for a family. Parents themselves might have difficulties in finding someone they can entrust with the care of their child who understands their situation.

We endeavour to link each child who joins the project with a carer who has the right attitude, skills and interests so that both can enjoy their time together. Parents can then have the opportunity to take a break, relaxed in the knowledge that their child is in safe hands.

The types of support we offer which are most popular are:

• a carer looking after a child for a day and night or two at a time in their home
• a carer looking after a child in the child's home so that they can remain in familiar surroundings
• a support worker or volunteer taking a young person on outings to leisure, sports or social events
• providing older children or teenagers the chance to socialise in groups and take part in a range of activities.
• the 'I go 2 service' enables young disabled people aged 8 – 18 access to leisure and recreational activities. A worker will provide support to the young person and setting for about twelve to sixteen weeks. It is then anticipated that the worker will withdraw and the setting will manage independently.