Activities Unlimited Improving access to leisure and short breaks for disabled children in Suffolk, UK through a market shaping brokerage service A partnership between Scope and Suffolk County Council Presenter: John McLachlan, Scope

The Problem Difficult to find “respite” and suitable leisure opportunities for disabled children so parents had little time off from caring responsibilities Short breaks were mainly accessed by referral from a Social Worker who had very heavy case loads Poor choice of activities and long waiting lists Breaks or “respite” mainly focused on the care needs of the child, not on having fun or the needs of the rest of the family Usually only available to those in, or reaching, crisis

Partnership with Suffolk County Council Activities Unlimited was developed using funding from the ‘Aiming High For Disabled Children’ UK Government initiative in 2008 which aimed to improve disabled children’s access to short breaks Suffolk County Council wanted to use the opportunity to develop a “travel agency” style service to improve short break provision for children and young people with additional needs aged 0 to 25 In 2009 Scope secured the contract to develop a short breaks brokerage model in partnership with the Council.

What families wanted A broader choice of activities including sport, arts, holiday and after-school provision Logistical information: eg where the activity is, how do I get to it and how and when do I pay for the activity? Confidence that the activity will suit my child: eg what size are the groups, is the venue accessible? Confidence in the staff and provider: eg what training and experience do the staff have, how will they support my child, what happens if my child has a problem?

What providers wanted… Their information to be accurate and up to date To use their own photographs and logos To have direct contact with families who wanted information or to book Support to improve their offer to disabled children

Key outputs of Activities Unlimited An interactive website, enabling young people and parents and carers to search and book short breaks A brokerage service, operated by the national disability charity Scope to develop and maintain the range, volume and quality of short breaks available A set of Quality Standards based on the three Rs (‘Rights, Respect and Readiness’) combined with practical support and access to grant funding to help providers improve their offer to disabled children Self assessment tool to determine eligibility for additional support and funding

Benefits for families Automated self-assessment process and 24 hour website makes finding and booking activities quicker and easier for parents. Many activities are subsidised or offer discounts to members at the click of a button Activities that may suit the child are automatically suggested when families register. If you can’t find the activity you want Activities Unlimited will approach providers to see if they can offer it. Website is a “one stop shop” service that brings together information and support services for families with disabled children in one place Supports networking and peer support amongst families with disabled children across Suffolk

Key innovations #1- market shaping brokerage Activities Unlimited brought together all the short breaks and leisure activities in Suffolk in one place. This made it easy for providers to promote their activities and for families to book them via a fully interactive website Consulted with families to understand what they wanted and identify unmet needs. Approached providers across Suffolk to develop new activities in response.

Key innovations #2- quality standards and grant investment Activities Unlimited offers expert advice and support to providers so they can deliver quality services and benchmarks the quality of provision through our ‘Triple R’ Quality Standards Scheme AU also manages a grant investment system to incentivise providers to develop sustainable short break activities. Activities Unlimited controls a grant funding pot to support providers to skill up their staff and subsidise activities that are in demand from families. Grant subsidies can be withdrawn from services that are not used or not providing high quality services, this naturally decommissions services that aren’t wanted.

Further Impact There are currently 2,700 children and young people registered via the website In 2009 there were 35 short break providers in Suffolk. There are now around 200 providers of mainstream and specialist leisure activities who offer quality activities to disabled children and young people Since 2009 the caseload held by the local Disabled Children’s Social Care team has reduced by more than half The need for crisis care has almost vanished