Children’s Respite Resource Panel

What is Respite?

Respite is a term used to describe a child and their family having a short break from one another. Another word used to describe respite is short break. It can mean a range of things from a couple of hours out enjoying a community activity through to several days with a specially recruited foster family or with a group of children in a residential setting.

What is the Children’s Respite Resource Panel?

Children’s Services (Southampton and Hampshire), Southampton City Primary Care Trust, the Rose Road Association, MENCAP and KIDS are all providers of short break services for children with learning disabilities. These agencies have combined together to pool and co-ordinate the allocation of short break services. This group is known as the Children’s Respite Resource Panel.

How does the Respite Resource Panel help?

The panel meets every month, and families and referrers are invited to discuss face to face with service providers, their own special needs and wishes for their children.

Usually requests for respite are met by short-term residential care at Westwood or the Oaks and Acorns, or in family based care via the Family Link Scheme or Take-A-Break scheme. Support and activities within the home or community (through outreach workers) can be offered.

Are all requests successful?

Although the panel cannot guarantee to meet all requests in terms of location and duration, it does provide a channel by which the needs of parents and children can be clearly identified and this invaluable information can be used in the planning and development of future services.

What if I need emergency respite care?

Emergency requests can be made through your local Community Nurse or Social Worker who will endeavour to find the most appropriate setting as quickly as possible.

How do I get referred?

The initial referral to the panel can be made directly by families, Community Nurses, Social Workers, Headteacher or other agencies. One of the panel will then visit you to complete an assessment of your child’s needs for short breaks.

Not only does the panel seek to address the needs of new children to the service, but also to review the placements of existing children so as to continually meet changing needs in the most appropriate setting.

Where do I find out more?

›	Sue Salter - Rose Road Association Bradbury Centre, 300 Aldermoor Road, Southampton SO16 5NA
	023 8072 1234
	suesalter@roseroad.org