Draft guidance detailed

Community Care Live delegates were
the first to hear of new draft consultation guidance on services
for disabled children from birth to two years old.

The
guidance highlights ways to make life easier for parents, including
early diagnosis, accurate and timely information, joined up
assessments, family-held records and appointing key
workers.

About
3 per cent of children up to the age of two are
disabled.

Currently, parents often
experience a lack of sensitivity at diagnosis with unco-ordinated
services, and a lack of information.

“One
mother had 350 appointments for her 18-month-old disabled child,”
said Paul Ennals, chief executive of children’s charity NCB and
chairperson of the working party that developed the
guidance.

The
guidance outlines proposals for a family service plan. This would
be a written report of the assessment describing the child, family
and the services they need. It would also name a
keyworker.

Ennals
hopes that chancellor Gordon Brown will announce extra funding in
the comprehensive spending review in the summer to help reshape and
build on services for disabled children aged 0-2.

The
working party comprised representatives from government, social
services and voluntary organisations, as well as parents of
disabled children.

After
consultation, the resulting guidance will feed into the National
Service Framework for Children.

–
Together From the Start: Services for Disabled Children 0-2 and
Their Families at www.doh.gov.uk