You haven’t had an evening off in three months. Your last holiday was cancelled because there was nobody to look after your child. You can’t remember the last time you slept through the night. And the idea of asking for help feels like admitting you can’t cope.
You’re not failing. You’re caring for a child whose needs are more than one person can meet alone. And your Local Authority (LA) has a legal duty to help.
Short breaks, sometimes called respite care, are services designed to give you time to rest, work, or simply be yourself. Every local authority in England has a legal duty to provide them: after-school clubs, holiday schemes, overnight stays, befriending, sitting services, or direct payments to arrange your own. They’re a legal entitlement, not a luxury, yet most families have never accessed them. Here’s what’s available and how to ask for it.
The legal duty
Under the Breaks for Carers of Disabled Children Regulations 2011, every local authority in England must:
- Provide a range of short breaks services, so far as is reasonably practicable
- Publish a short breaks statement setting out what’s available
- Give families enough information to understand what they can access
This isn’t discretionary. It’s a regulation made under paragraph 6 of Schedule 2 to the Children Act 1989. The LA must provide short breaks as part of its duty to safeguard and promote the welfare of disabled children and their families.
Despite this legal requirement, research from the Disabled Children’s Partnership shows that more than half of parent carers (around 53%) have never accessed any short break services. The duty exists on paper but isn’t delivered in practice for most families.
What short breaks look like
Short breaks come in many forms. They’re not just about someone taking your child overnight (though that’s one option). The range includes:
- After-school clubs and youth groups designed for disabled children
- Holiday play schemes during school holidays
- Weekend activities (sports, arts, social groups)
- Overnight stays at a short breaks unit or with a trained carer
- Befriending services where someone takes your child out for a few hours
- Direct payments to employ a personal assistant who supports your child
- Sitting services so you can leave the house
- Family activities where the whole family can attend with support
The type of short break should match your child’s needs and your family’s situation. A teenager with autism might benefit from a specialist youth club. A child with complex medical needs might need overnight care from trained staff. A family with multiple children might need someone to take the disabled child out so the parents can spend time with siblings.
Direct payments
One of the most flexible options is a direct payment. Instead of the LA arranging services, they give you money to arrange your own support.
With a direct payment, you can:
- Employ a personal assistant (PA) to look after your child
- Pay for activities or clubs that suit your child
- Arrange support at times that work for your family
- Choose someone your child knows and trusts
| LA-arranged services | Direct payments | |
|---|---|---|
| Flexibility | LA decides what and when | You choose what and when |
| Provider | LA-approved providers only | You choose who supports your child |
| Timing | Fixed schedules | You set the schedule |
| Relationship | Different carers each time | Consistent PA if you want |
| Admin | LA handles everything | You’re in charge of employment and payments (support is available to help with this) |
Many families find direct payments far more helpful because you can tailor support to what you actually need. One limit to know about: a direct payment normally cannot pay your partner, or a close relative who lives in your home, unless the council is satisfied that using that person is necessary to meet your child’s needs. If the LA offers you services through their own provision, it’s always worth asking whether a direct payment would suit your family better.
How to access short breaks
There are two routes to accessing short breaks:
1. Through the Local Offer (no assessment needed)
Every LA publishes a Local Offer listing services available for disabled children. Some short break services are available without any assessment. You just sign up.
Check your LA’s Local Offer website for:
- Youth clubs for disabled children
- Holiday schemes
- Weekend activities
- Family events
These are sometimes called “universal” short breaks. You may also see “targeted” short breaks listed, which usually involve a short assessment first.
2. Through a social care assessment
For more substantial support (overnight respite, regular PA hours, direct payments), you’ll usually need a children in need assessment or a parent carer assessment.
- Request an assessmentContact your LA’s children with disabilities team. Ask for a children in need assessment or parent carer assessment.
- Assessment visitA social worker visits to assess your child’s needs and your family’s situation.
- Support planIf eligible, the LA creates a support plan setting out what short breaks you’ll receive.
- Services beginShort breaks start. These might be LA-arranged services or direct payments.
- ReviewThe support plan is reviewed regularly to check it’s still meeting your needs.
The short breaks statement
Every LA must publish a short breaks statement explaining what services are available, how to access them, and the eligibility criteria. This should be on your LA’s website, usually within the Local Offer section.
If you can’t find it, ask. The LA is legally required to have one.
If your LA’s short breaks statement says services are “subject to budget” or “only available after assessment,” check whether there are also universal services that don’t need an assessment. Many LAs bury the easier-to-access options.
Why families don’t get short breaks
The duty is clear. The services exist. But most families never access them. Here’s why:
Nobody told you they exist. LAs rarely promote short breaks proactively. You might qualify for universal services in your Local Offer with no assessment needed, but the council doesn’t make this obvious.
The assessment takes months. Some LAs have long waiting lists for social care assessments. Even after you request an assessment, you might wait a while: statutory guidance sets a maximum of 45 working days for a child in need assessment, and some LAs use all of it or longer.
Services don’t match your child’s needs. Generic after-school clubs aren’t suitable for children with complex medical or behavioural needs. If the LA’s services don’t fit, they’ll tell you there’s nothing available.
The application process is too complicated. Multiple forms, repeated assessments, unclear eligibility criteria. You have to ask the right questions in the right way to get the right answer.
But there are also routes that work. You can self-refer directly for universal short breaks listed in the Local Offer. Your local Special Educational Needs and Disability Information, Advice and Support Service (SENDIASS) can walk you through the process and knows what’s genuinely available in your area. And if you’re told no, there are formal routes to challenge that decision.
What if the LA says no?
If the LA refuses to provide short breaks after an assessment, or doesn’t carry out an assessment at all, you can:
- Ask for the decision in writing with reasons
- Request a review through the LA’s complaints process
- Complain to the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman once you’ve finished the LA’s complaints process, or if it hasn’t responded in a reasonable time. Do this within 12 months of first knowing about the problem
- Contact your SENDIASS for advice on challenging the decision
Getting help
Contact has guides on short breaks and can help you find what’s available in your area (helpline: 0808 808 3555).
Your local SENDIASS knows what short break services your LA provides and can help you apply.
Carers UK offers advice on respite care and carer rights (helpline: 0808 808 7777).
The break is part of the plan
Caring for a disabled child is one of the hardest things anyone can do. Needing time to rest is part of being human, not a sign you’re failing.
Short breaks exist because the system recognises that families can’t do this alone. Your LA has a legal duty to provide them. If you haven’t been offered any, ask. And if the answer is no, challenge it.