A short break is an activity or service which provides parents and carers with a break from their caring responsibilities, helps to support a child or young person’s social and emotional development and learn new skills as well as providing a new experiences.

Families are expected to provide transport to and from their child’s short break activity or service. In exceptional circumstances, support may be available to provide transport, and parents may be expected to contribute to the cost of transport, where this is in line with what any parent would contribute for a child without disabilities.

Short breaks can include day, evening, overnight or weekend activities. They can take place in the child’s own home, in the home of an approved carer or in a residential or community setting.

They enjoy being with other young people and carers are able to catch up on sleep a little.

A disability is defined as a physical and/or mental impairment that has a long-term and significant impact on a child or young person’s ability to carry out everyday activities and on their development.

Under the Children Act 1989, all local authorities are required to maintain a register of children and young people with disabilities living in their area. In Herefordshire, this register is used to help understand local need, inform planning, and ensure that services are developed to meet the needs of children, young people, and their families.

Being identified as having a disability, or being included on the disability register, does not automatically mean that a child or young person will need social care support. Many families may be supported through universal services, or through targeted and preventative support within the community.

This statement aims to help you understand the types of support that may be available, based on your child or young person’s individual needs.

If you would like your child to join the register visit Herefordshire register of children with disabilities or email shortbreaks@herefordshire.gov.uk

The legal frameworks used in this statement are:

• Breaks for Carers of Disabled Children Regulations 2011
• Children Act 1989 (Section 17 (1))
• Children and Young Persons Act 2008
• Children and Families Act 2014
• Short Breaks Regulations Chronically Sick and Disabled Persons Act 1970
• Equality Act 2010

A short break will enable children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) to:

• Have fun
• Spend time with friends and make new ones
• Take part in interesting activities and new experiences
• Develop positive life and social skills
• Be more independent or confident
• Prepare for life as an adult
• Be safe

For parents and carers of children with SEND, a short break will enable them to:

• Feel less pressured
• Be able to get on with normal routines
• Have some ‘me’ time
• Spend time with other children or together as a family
• Be confident that their child is safe and having fun with skilled carers who understand their needs

Schedule 2 (section 6) of the Children’s Act 1989 states the local authority has a duty to provide services that: 

• Minimise the effect of a child’s disabilities
• Give children an opportunity to live ordinary lives
• Provide support to those people who care for a disabled additional needs child/children by enabling them to have breaks from their caring role

The Breaks for Carers of Disabled Children Regulations 2011 states that a local authority must consider the needs of carers who would be unable to continue to care unless breaks from caring were given to them.

Types of short breaks

Not all children and families will need the same type or level of short break, some will need more than others because of the nature and severity of their child's disability. Universal and targeted short break services can be accessed without an assessment. 

Mainstream community services are those that are open to the public. These are known as universal activities and include, for example, youth clubs, uniformed groups (for example cubs, brownies), leisure centres, nurseries, childminders and activity- based groups. Many families of child with disabilities access these type of activities successfully once the provider has understood from parent carers, carers or those with parental responsibility how to meet their child’s needs. You can access universal services by contacting organisations directly. Families pay any costs for using universal services.

In Herefordshire, many local providers offer inclusive activities that can be accessed without the need for an assessment. Across the different Halo Leisure venues, you can hire adaptive bikes, attend SEND swim sessions, enjoy SEND soft play sessions, and access inclusive gymnastics with Halo Sparks. The Courtyard Theatre in Hereford runs regular inclusive rave discos, drama clubs, themed workshops and relaxed performances. There are sensory rooms available to book for exclusive use or as a group at Hope Centre in Bromyard and Mulberry Foster Care in Ross on Wye.

All universal services have a duty to respond to the Equality Act 2010 by ensuring their services are accessible to children and young people with disabilities. Some universal services may offer concessions to children with disabilities and their carers. To find out whether the service you would like to access offers concessions you should ask the service directly.

There is a range of services designed specifically for children/young people with disabilities that can also provide a short break for the parents or carers. These services can be accessed without the need for a professional assessment.

For example, some clubs and groups offer SEND specific sessions and local venues offer dedicated sessions for children and young people with additional needs and disabilities.

Throughout 2026, the following local providers will be offering SEND sessions through our social opportunities for children and young people with SEND grant. 

• Longtown Outdoor Learning Trust (Longtown, HR2) - Outdoor adventurous activities with an overnight stay for children and young people with SEND.
• Trewen Meadows Ltd (Ross on Wye, HR9) - Group horse riding, hands-on horse care and social activities for children and young people aged 5-18 years with SEND.
• Autism in Racing (Hereford, HR4) - Autism-friendly family race days at Hereford Racecourse.
• Little Play World (Countywide) - Pop-up role play SEND sessions in the local community.
• Close House Projects (Hereford, HR1) - Enhanced youth support work to enable more young people with SEND to access their local youth provision.
• Woodcraft Folk Biblins (Ross on Wye, HR9) - SEND activity days at Biblins Youth Campsite with residential summer camp.
• Herefordshire Cricket (Hereford, HR1) - Disability cricket programme for children and young people with physical, learning and sensory disabilities.
• The Core Skate Hereford CIC (Hereford, HR1) - Rollator accessibility devices to support children and young people to feel more confident when roller skating
• Marches Family Network (Countywide) - Stay and Play style sessions for children and young people with SEND and their families.

Information about universal and targeted services is available on the Home - Talk Community Directory website and are shared regularly on the Herefordshire SEND Local Offer Facebook page.

It allows us as a parent to recharge our batteries and have some social time.

Looking for a little extra support to help your child enjoy activities and have fun? Herefordshire Council’s Targeted Short Breaks (TSB) Allowance Scheme is here to help. This scheme is designed to support children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities, making it easier for them to join in with clubs, hobbies, and leisure activities in their community.

Who can get it?
Automatically eligible:

• Children and young people aged 4 -17 with an Education, Health and Care (EHC) Plan on Tariff D or above.

May also be eligible:

• Children and young people aged 0 - 17 who:
• Don’t have an EHC plan, or
• Have an EHC plan on Tariff A - C, but need extra support to access leisure activities

In these cases, applications can be considered under special circumstances.

How does it work?

To get started, families simply need to complete an application form.
If applying under special circumstances, your application will:

• Be reviewed by a panel of professionals
• Be carefully considered using the information and evidence you provide
• Be discussed at one of the panel’s regular meetings throughout the year

Want to know more?
You can find full details about:

• Who the scheme is for
• Terms and conditions
• How to apply

Because every child deserves the chance to explore, connect, and enjoy their free time.

Herefordshire’s Children with Disabilities Service provides support from the front door through our CHAT (Children’s Hub and Assessment Team) to coordinating assessment and plans with children and families. This includes offering advice and guidance, completing social care assessments for EHCPs, and providing support through Family Support Workers and Social Workers. The team works closely with wider services, including Occupational Therapy, to ensure coordinated support for children and families.

While many children’s needs can be met through universal or targeted short breaks, some may require a higher level of support. In these cases, specialist short break services can be provided following a social care assessment of the child and their family’s needs.

Further information about the short breaks assessment and review process can be found in the Short Breaks Assessment and Review Handbook.

The Children with Disabilities Team will work with families to assess needs and identify the most appropriate support. This may be led by a social worker or a family support worker, depending on individual circumstances and the child and family’s needs. 

Following assessment, examples of support may include:

• Direct Payments (DP) to fund personalised support, such as employing a Personal Assistant
• Daytime activities, including community-based or group provision
• Individual 1:1 support at home or in the community
• Family-based overnight short breaks (fostering)
• Residential overnight short breaks

Access to specialist short breaks is guided by the following principles

Promoting the health, safety and well-being of children and young people who have disabilities, ensuring they can fully participate in family and community life, enjoying themselves with friends and making decisions about their lives and being prepared for adulthood

Preventing family crisis through the provision of short breaks for carers

The needs of children and their families change and the process of assessment and providing appropriate levels of support should reflect this

The need to be fair, clear, equitable and sustainable

If you’d like to know more about the children with disabilities assessment process, please contact the Herefordshire Children with Disabilities Social Care Team on 01432 261584 to discuss or e-mail dutychildrenwithdisabilitiesteam@herefordshire.gov.uk 

You can find information about short breaks services available in Herefordshire on the short breaks and respite webpage

You can search for short breaks providers and activities on the Talk Community Directory

If you have any feedback about the webpage or the services you access, please email shortbreaks@herefordshire.gov.uk

Parent Carer Voice Herefordshire (PCVH) is Led by parent carers. Everything we do is rooted in lived experience - ensuring that services for children and young people with SEND are shaped by the families who use them.

Short breaks give children and young people with SEND the chance to enjoy new experiences, build confidence and have fun, while giving families valuable time to rest and recharge.

At Parent Carer Voice Herefordshire (PCV(H), we work alongside families and professionals to make sure these services truly meet the needs of local children and their families.

Listening to Families

Everything we do starts with real experiences. We gather feedback from parent carers through:

• Conversations and community events
• Surveys and engagement activities
• Ongoing relationships with families across Herefordshire

“You said...” We make sure every voice is heard.

Influencing and Co-Producing Services

We work with, not for, partners across education, health and social care.

• We are equal partners in decision-making
• We bring lived experience into strategic discussions
• We help shape how services like Short Breaks are designed and delivered

This is what co-production looks like in action.

Improving Short Breaks

We use what families tell to help improve services.

• Making information clearer and easier to understand
• Helping redesign processes and guidance
• Ensuring services reflect real family needs

“We did...” - turning feedback into real change

Supporting Families and Community

We work with, not for, partners across education, health and social care.

• We are equal partners in decision-making
• We bring lived experience into strategic discussions
• We help shape how services like Short Breaks are designed and delivered

You are not alone.

Working Together

We believe services work best when they are designed with families, not for them.

Together, we are helping to create better Short Breaks for children, young people and families across Herefordshire.

We are here to represent, support and empower parents and carers of children and young people (0-25) with SEND Herefordshire.

Get involved - your voice matters!

Get in touch

Email: admin@pcvherefordshire.com
Follow us on Facebook: PCVHerefordshire
Visit our website