Short Breaks

In many situations, the child's Assessment may be a brief assessment where the trigger for assessment is a request for a short break and this is for relatively low levels of short break provision so that it would fall within the Child in Need criteria (see Section 2, Determining the Nature and Status of the Short Break - Assessment of Needs).

Nevertheless, sufficient information will be required to ensure key information about the child is identified; the reason for the short break; contact and communication details of the person with Parental Responsibility and their ability to monitor the placement whilst the child is there; the child's health and medical details and provision of urgent medical attention (if required); the child's routines, likes, dislikes and current arrangements for the child, (e.g. School) together with behavioural issues and how these are usually dealt with by the family. There should be opportunities for the short break carer and parent and child to meet and discuss the child's personality, routines, etc.

This information and the arrangements should be reflected in a Child in Need Plan (see Section 4, Plans) together with the child's understanding and views of them going into a Short Break situation and the caring arrangements to be provided by the Short Term Break carer.

Where the child is to be Accommodated under Section 20, the relevant Accommodation papers and 'Consent' details should be completed. A Care and Placement Plan should reflect the arrangements required (see Section 4.2, Looked After Child Short Break Care Plan).

Where the child's circumstances are more complex because of their social and /or health needs and they are receiving substantial levels of short break support (possibly in different placements), they will be Accommodated under Section 20; a more comprehensive Assessment will be required and should include a multi-agency approach.

Care and Placement Plans should be fully completed and recorded and include Consent, Health, Education and Contact Plans.

Where children become Looked After the Independent Reviewing Unit should be advised and appropriate arrangements made for a review, depending upon whether Regulation 48 applies (see Section 5, Reviews).

Short breaks will only be used to provide respite care for foster carers when it is in the child's best interests, including improved stability of the child's placement with the foster carers. Any respite care provided must take full account of the child's needs.

Children who receive short breaks should continue to make progress in their development and acquire skills and/or new experiences.

Parent Carers have a right to have an assessment of their own under the Children and Families Act 2014; section 97 of the Children & Families Act 2014 requires local authorities to undertake a 'parent carers needs assessment':

• On the appearance of need, or
• Where an assessment is requested by the parent.

Where requested, then the local authority must assess whether that parent has needs for support and, if so, what those needs are. The assessment must include an assessment of whether it is appropriate for the parent to provide, or continue to provide, care for the disabled child, in the light of the parent's needs for support, other needs and wishes.

The assessment must also have regard to:

• The well-being of the parent carer, and
• The need to safeguard and promote the welfare of the child and any other child for whom the parent carer has parental responsibility.

Following assessment, the local authority must then decide:

• Whether the parent has needs for support;
• Whether the child has need for support;
• And if so whether those needs could be met (wholly or partly) by services under Children Act 1989, s17.

Services to be provided for parent carers of disabled children should be included in the Child in Need Plan and can be included in the Education, Health, and Care Plan if the child has one.

There should be effective relationships with parents/carers so that they feel confident leaving their child for their stay and they understand what the placement can offer. Parents should feel involved in the planning of the short break placement and that they are able to raise concerns and complaints. Short break staff should be accessible and keep parents informed about their child’s short break experiences.

See also: Children and Young People Aged 0-25 with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities Procedure, Young Carers and Parent Carers of Disabled Children and Young Carers Procedure.

This is applicable where short breaks are provided under Section 17 Children Act 1989.

The Child in Need Plan should be in writing and set out clearly all the services that are to be provided to meet the child's needs. Many families with disabled children receive a range of services to meet their child's needs. Wherever possible there should be a single plan which includes the full range of family support services on a multi-agency basis. The plan will show how the short break will meet the needs of the child and family identified in the assessment. It will:

• Have clear and realistic objectives;
• Include the ascertainable wishes and feelings of the child and views of the family. The child may benefit from having an advocate;
• Follow consideration of options, including but not limited to direct payments;
• State the nature and frequency of services, as far as is practicable, including health and social care in the same plan, especially if short breaks are provided from different agencies;
• State the child's health, emotional and behavioural development including full details about any disabilities and clinical needs the child may have and medications they may require;
• State the child's specific communication needs, especially for children who communicate non-verbally, and include the child's likes and dislikes with particular regard to leisure activities;
• Include the results of all necessary risk assessments which could include, depending on the child's impairment, moving and handling, invasive procedures, and behaviour;
• State contact arrangements for emergencies;
• State commitments of professionals involved;
• Refer to or summarise any other important documents about the child's development;
• Confirm those caring for the child have been selected following the advice set out in Government guidance on direct payments (see GOV.UK, Apply for direct payments); and
• Outline arrangements to review the plan.

The plan should include all the information necessary to ensure the safeguarding and welfare of the child in the short break. Much information may already be available from a variety of sources including the parent-held child record. The plan should be made available as necessary in accessible formats.

This is applicable where short breaks are provided under Section 20 Children Act 1989.

Where, following assessment, it is agreed with the family that the child should be Looked After under Section 20 of the 1989 Act, there will be additional requirements about planning and review. In this situation the information compiled for the Child in Need Plan (as set out in 4.1 above) will form the basis for the Short Break Care Plan required when a child is looked after under Section 20 and Regulation 48 applies (Situation 2).

In Situation 3, the Short Break Care Plan should be linked to the care plan, which should include all the key information about the child. These should not be separate plans which duplicate information.

The Short Break Care Plan must set out the arrangements to meet the child's needs with particular regard to:

• The child's health and emotional and behavioural development, any disability, medical needs and medications;
• The child's specific communication needs;
• Promoting contact with parents/anyone with parental responsibility;
• Arrangements for contacting parents as necessary, in particular an emergency contact number;
• The child's likes and dislikes regarding stimulation and leisure interests;
• How the carers, as appropriate, promote the child's educational achievement;
• The name and address of the registered medical practitioner;
• The type of accommodation, address, name of person responsible;
• The child's personal history, religious persuasion, cultural and linguistic background and racial origin;
• The respective responsibilities of the local authority and parents/anyone with Parental Responsibility; any delegation of responsibility from parents to the local authority; the respective roles and responsibilities of the placement provider, social worker, Independent Reviewing Officer (IRO) and other staff employed or commissioned by the local authority to contribute to the plan for the child's care; the respective safeguarding responsibilities of the provider and the local authority;
• The expected duration of the arrangements and the steps to end them; arrangements for giving notice of intention to terminate the placement along with the local authority's responsibilities for convening a review of the child's Care and Pathway Plan where there is a risk of the placement being terminated;
• Frequency of visits;
• Financial arrangements for the placement;
• When the child is placed with a local authority-approved foster carer, confirmation of the foster carer's agreement;
• The provider's responsibilities for notifying the child's social worker of any significant change in the child's circumstances.

As far as practicable, the child should be involved in agreeing the Plan.

The parents must be fully involved in all aspects of agreeing the Short Break Care Plan.

The plan should be signed by the parents, the local authority, those providing the care/ the provider agency and, where appropriate, the child.

There is no requirement for a separate Placement Plan for short breaks.

Where required and appropriate please note 'Ceasing to look after a child', Children Act 1989 Guidance and Regulations - Volume 2: Care Planning, Placement and Case Review.

No significant change to a Child in Need Plan or a Short Break Care Plan should be made unless it has first been considered at a review.

In each case, whether children are provided with accommodation under Section 17 or under Section 20, the review should consider whether this continues to be the most appropriate legislative basis for the service provided.

A record should be kept, recording the views of those involved in the review, decisions taken and the identity of the persons responsible for implementing them.

A case review for a child who is not looked after should:

• Ensure the service(s) provided meet the needs identified in the Child in Need Plan and safeguard and promote the welfare of the child;
• Focus on outcomes for the child and family;
• Be a multi-agency review whenever possible. Different elements of a child's care package should not require a separate review;
• Include the ascertainable wishes and feelings of the child and the views of the family;
• Take place at least six monthly. The needs of the child and family may indicate that a review should take place before the statutory minimum, for example if the child's condition is changing quickly, or there are changed family circumstances, or where there is a complex package of services including direct payments.

A review will usually include a face-to-face meeting but in some cases, regular review meetings may not be necessary. Generally, it should be possible to include a review of short breaks with a review of other aspects of a child's health, education or development, where some of the same people will already be together.

Reviews should take the form of a meeting when requested by the family. In all circumstances a face-to-face meeting should take place at least once a year.

Depending on the level of service for the child and family and the vulnerability of the child, local authorities may wish to consider including an element in the review which is independent of the service provider and those with Parental Responsibility, for example arranging for an 'independent' chair with a role similar to the role of the IRO in the case of a looked after child.

Having an advocate may be particularly useful for disabled young people moving towards adulthood.

Reviews are less frequent than for looked after children in Situation 3:

• The first review must take place within 3 months of the start of the first placement;
• Second and subsequent reviews must take place at intervals of not more than 6 months;
• Reviews may be convened earlier, e.g. at the request of the child, parents or carer; or in cases where the child is particularly vulnerable; or where the child is provided with a high level of short breaks.

The 2010 Regulations in relation to Looked After Reviews apply in full, and reviews will take place as follows:

• The first review must take place within 20 working days of the first placement;
• The second review must take place not more than 3 months after the first;
• Subsequent reviews must take place at intervals of not more than 6 months.

For further details, see the Child Looked After Reviews Procedure.