Short breaks survey

Short breaks survey

Introduction

Short Breaks are activities for disabled children and young people and their families. Oxfordshire County Council are reviewing short breaks services as part of recommissioning the Short Breaks they offer. We would like to hear from parents and carers of disabled children and young people, so that your views can feed into our review. Please tell us about the child you care for with Special Education Needs or Disability (“SEND”).

If you have more than one child, and their circumstances are similar, please complete the survey once. If you have something additional to say about another child, or their circumstances are particularly different, you are welcome to complete a separate survey for them.

Information about the council’s short breaks for disabled children is on the county council’s website. This includes a statement about the short breaks support we are providing and which short breaks are available that could work for your child.

The feedback from the survey will be used to help us plan future short breaks services. The results of the survey will be shared on our Local Offer website.

Thank you for taking the time to fill in our survey. Before you start answering the questions, here is some information which might help you:

What are Short Breaks?

Short Breaks are activities for disabled children and young people and their families. They give disabled children and young people the chance to:

• Spend time away from their families
• Take part in activities and try new things
• Relax and have fun with their friends

This gives parents and carers a break so that the can:

• Spend time with other family members and friends
• Rest and unwind
• Do other things they enjoy.

A Short Break can vary from a few hours in the week to an overnight stay. They can be in the day, evening or at weekends.

Providers that offer Short Breaks services in Oxfordshire (jointly funded by Oxfordshire County Council and Oxfordshire ICB, formally Oxfordshire CCG).

• Viking House (Headington) and Sycamore Resource Centre (Banbury): residential overnight where children age 8-18 have a regular stay in one of our Short Break houses.
• Flexicare offering a sitting and support service for families
• Autism Family Support Oxfordshire provides youth groups and holiday activities for children for young people (8–18 years) Asperger's Syndrome / high functioning autism across the county.
• Barnardos run after school clubs in, Witney and Abingdon.
• Bardwell School provides after school activity clubs three days a week for children and young people (5-18) in Bicester. They also provide a youth group for disabled children and young people (11-18) in the Bicester and Kidlington area as well as holiday activities for disabled children and young people (5-18)
• Bishopswood provides an afterschool club and holiday playschemes three days a week for children and young people (5-18) in Sonning Common and the local area.
• Fizwaryn School provides holiday activities for disabled children and young people (5-18) in the Wantage area.
• KIDS run an after-school club in Wheatley for disabled children and young people (5–18 years). They also offer holiday playscheme activities.
• Let’s Play provides after school activities for disabled children and young people (5-18 years) in Banbury. They also provide a youth group for disabled children and young people (11-18 years), as well as a variety of holiday activities.
• Yellow Submarine runs activities across Oxfordshire for young people aged 11-18 years supporting young people with mild to moderate learning disabilities and or/Autism. They also deliver holiday activities for students from Abingdon and Witney College aged 16-18 years.
• The Parasol Project provides an inclusive holiday playscheme for children aged five to 12 years. The playscheme runs during the school holidays in Oxford four days a week. They also run age-appropriate teenage activities in all school holidays and during term time for young people aged 12 to 18 years. All the activities are for disabled and non-disabled young people to take part in together.

Have your say

Please have your say by completing our SURVEY below, which should take no longer than 20 minutes to complete. All responses must be submitted by end of day Tuesday 16 August 2022.

All your answers will be treated in the strictest confidence and we are not collecting any information that may identify you as an individual.

Any questions?

If you have any questions about the survey please email: peter.vigors@oxforshire.gov.uk.