Wiltshire children's hospice "pleased" after funding allocated for families of disabled children
It's funding for the next three years
The Chief Executive of a Wiltshire children's hospice charity has welcomed the decision by the government to allocate £30 million for additional short breaks for families with disabled children.
While Julia's House won't be getting any of this money, it's something they have been campaigning for.
The Department for Education has recently announced that the funding will be available for the next three years to set up more than 10,000 additional respite placements across England.
Julia’s House CEO Martin Edwards said:
“The £30m that will be given to Local Authorities is a good start, but not yet a game-changer. It is £10m a year for three years spread across the whole country, and parents of disabled children are a very large group. We must keep up the pressure on their behalf, and show more politicians, locally and nationally, how respite keeps families from falling apart. Ultimately we need to convince Government to prevent the crisis with a lasting solution.”
The news on additional funding follows the ‘Give Me a Break’ report, which was published by Julia’s House and the UK children’s hospice charity, 'Together for Short Lives' in 2020.
The report showed that parents of seriously ill children would experience significantly less stress as a result of receiving breaks – moving them out of the ‘most stressed’ category of society.
They are also likely to have a positive impact on siblings and reduce the risk of parents breaking up.
'MORE WILL BE NEEDED'
Martin says the money is a positive thing, however it is only a start.
He says they will continue campaigning for it, as this money is just £10 million a year, which when broken down into the number of families affected doesn't stretch very far.
Martin added:
“Many of the local families that we support at Julia’s House face exhaustion on a daily basis as they provide round the clock care for their children who have hugely complex conditions.
“Over time, this immense pressure can push a family to breaking point if they don’t have access to regular breaks to relieve this stress and spend quality time together. We have been researching and campaigning for more than five years to spotlight the life-changing impact respite care has on these families, from improving health outcomes to preventing relationship break ups, and we will continue to campaign to raise awareness and increase funding on behalf of these families.”