Short Breaks Services Eligibility Criteria
This part of our Short Breaks Services Statement is intended to
assist professionals in the allocation of Short Breaks Services to
children and young people with disabilities, their parents or
carers and other family members specifically siblings.
It is also to provide information about Bedford Borough
Council's Short Break Services processes and eligibility criteria
to children and young people with disabilities and their
families.
The Resource Allocation Guidance and Short Breaks Eligibility
Criteria are to be used in conjunction with a formal assessment of
need such as a Common Assessment Framework (CAF); Children in Need
(CIN) Initial and, or Core Assessment and a Carers Assessment.
These assessments are usually carried out by Lead Professionals
in the case of CAF Assessments, or Social Workers in the case of
Children in Need Assessments and Carers Assessments.
Resources will be allocated by consideration of any submitted
formal assessments and additional supporting evidence.
This guidance uses descriptors to quantify the effect a
disability has on the ability of children and young people, their
parents or carers and siblings to carry out normal day to day
activities.
It also uses examples of what typical day to day activities for
these groups may be for people unaffected by a disability.
Disabilities and impairments may vary both in severity and the
impact they have on family life and it is not always possible to
account for all eventualities in advance.
Careful consideration should be given as to the individual
circumstances for each case and the impact on the health and
wellbeing of parents or carers and siblings this may have as it
will strongly influence the determination of need.
As such the terminology used within this guidance is subjective
to allow for discretion in determining levels of need and in making
decisions on the basis of these needs.
Descriptors and examples should be used as general indicators
only and decisions regarding the level of need and allocation of
resources should reflect this.
The aim should always be to provide the most appropriate
resources to assist individuals who provide care for children with
disabilities, to enable them to continue to do so, or to do so more
effectively by giving them breaks from caring,
And to present opportunities for children and young people with
disabilities to be able to experience new activities, establish and
build friendships and pursue their aspirational goals.
Why we Use This Guidance
We use this guidance because it is based on legal requirements
including:
- The Breaks for Carers of Disabled Children Regulations
2011
- The Equality Act 2010
- The Children’s Act 1989
- The Disability Discrimination Act (DDA)
- The Chronically Sick and Disabled Persons Act 1970
- The Framework for the Assessment of Children in Need and their
Families
Because it is designed around the Framework for the Assessment
of Children in Need and their Families it does not exclude anyone
and helps us to identify what Short Break Services children, young
people and families need.
Further it uses the principles of the Equality Act 2010 which
describes the effect of an impairment and not the impairment
itself.
Right to Appeal
Families and individuals have a right to appeal the assessment
of their needs. They should discuss this with the Lead
Professional or Social Worker who has undertaken the
assessment.
Definitions
DISABILITY - The Equality Act 2010 defines a
disabled person as a person with a disability.
A person has a disability for the purposes of the Act if he or
she has a physical or mental impairment and the impairment has a
substantial and long-term adverse effect on his or her ability to
carry out normal day-to-day activities. People who have had a
disability in the past that meets this definition are also
protected by the Act.
There are additional provisions relating to people with
progressive conditions. People with HIV, cancer or multiple
sclerosis are protected by the Act from the point of
diagnosis. People with some visual impairments are
automatically deemed to be disabled.
Whether a person is disabled for the purpose of the Act is
generally determined by reference to the effect that an impairment
has on that person’s ability to carry out normal day-to-day
activities.
An impairment may be physical or mental and it may not always be
possible, nor is it necessary, to categorise a condition as either
a physical or mental impairment.
The requirement that an adverse effect on normal day-to-day
activities should be a substantial one reflects the general
understanding of disability limitation going beyond the normal
differences in ability which may exist among people.
The time taken by a person with an impairment to carry out
normal day-to-day activities should be considered as should the
cumulative effects of more than one impairment.
The Act states that a long-term effect of an impairment is one
which has lasted at least 12 months or is likely to last at least
12 months or is likely to last for the rest of the life of the
person affected.
The Act does not define what is to be regarded as normal day to
day activity but in general are things people do on a regular or
daily basis.
Conditions that are Excluded
Some conditions are specifically excluded from being covered by
the disability definition, such as a tendency to set fires or
addictions to non–prescribed substances.
Further Definitions
For the purposes of the Equality Act 2010, these terms have the
following meanings:
SUBSTANTIAL - Means more than minor or
trivial.
LONG TERM - Means that the effect of the
impairment has lasted or is likely to last for at least twelve
months (there are special rules covering recurring or fluctuating
conditions.)
NORMAL DAY TO DAY ACTIVITIES - Include everyday
things like eating, washing, walking and going shopping.
PARENTS/CARERS - A person who provides care for
a child with disabilities and who is either the child’s parent or a
person who is not the child’s parent but who has parental
responsibility for that child.
SIBLINGS – A sibling can be a brother or sister
of a disabled child, or a child who permanently lives within the
same household.
Considerations
The information that follow in the Resource Allocation Guidance
and Short Breaks Eligibility Criteria are only examples; normal
day-to-day activities will be different for each child and family
and may be affected by factors such as age, culture or
religion.
Personal care means things like going to the toilet, having a
wash, getting dressed or teeth cleaning. For babies it will be
things like nappy changing.
Family’s needs are assessed on the criteria set out in Framework
for the Assessment of Children in Need and Their Families.
This looks at three areas including:
- The child’s developmental needs
- The parents’ parenting capacity
- Family and environmental factors
Circumstances that may be encountered within these areas because
of a disability are highlighted in the considerations section for
each assessed area.
If you have any questions about the Short Breaks Services
Statement, Pathways, Resource Allocation Guidance or Eligibility
Criteria please contact our Short Breaks Commissioning Manager on
01234 267422 to discuss these matters further.
Downloads
Our Short Breaks Services Statement is available to download
here:
Short Breaks
Services Statement (Pdf)
