Issues Discussed at the Last All Wales Forum

This section provides details of issues discussed at previous meetings of the All Wales Forum on Issues for Disabled Children and Young People.

May 2010

Early Support: Improving Services for disabled children and their families in Wales.

Catherine Lewis from Children in Wales gave a presentation about the Early Support Programme that has been introduced in Wales to improve the quality, consistency and coordination of services for disabled children under the age of five and their families. Among its roles are to :-

Raise expectation about the way agencies and services work together to meet the needs of children and families
Provide practical resources that drive and support the change process at local level.
Secure the raising of achievement and improvement in emotional well-being of children within their families, settings and schools.

Early Support is a multi-agency transformation programme that builds on services and systems that are already in place to support families with young disabled children.

Many materials are available via Early Support however it is important to note that the "materials are not the intervention". Materials include:

A range of Information for Parents booklets on particular conditions or disabilities that provide standard ‘first step’ information for families where a particular factor has been identified as significant for a child
An Early Support Family pack which helps with service co-ordination on a day-to-day basis and provides background information about how services work
An Early Support Service Audit Tool, which helps service providers and managers evaluate the quality of services being provided and plan for improvement
A range of Monitoring Protocol/Developmental Journal materials which help families to track development in their child, provide a common framework supporting discussion about the child over time including supporting the child and family towards next steps.

Each local authority area has an identified Early Support Consultant who is responsible for supporting the implementation of Early Support in local areas, contribute to the development of strategies and promote the take up of Early Support and Early Support training. The programme needs to be embedded into local practice for it to succeed long term.

Presentation on Documents Explaining The Process of Transition to Adulthood for Young Disabled People

Zoe Richards from Learning Disability Wales spoke about the three documents commissioned by The Welsh Assembly Government which aim to explain the process of transition from disabled children’ to adult services. Learning Disability Wales has produced the young person’s guide to transition which is entitled "My Life, My Way". This includes what should happen from year 8 to 12 in planning for transition, what happens in a transition planning meeting and who should attend and the options available after leaving school. Also included are stories about what three young people have achieved after leaving school. Sara works full time for Mencap Cymru, Shane works full time at Your Pet’s Warehouse in Tonypandy and Sophie works full time at a Restaurant in Tenby. SNAP Cymru are producing the document "Transition, a Parent’s Guide" This includes similar information to the young people’s guide plus information about money matters, independent living and work rest and play opportunities. The Welsh Centre for Learning Disabilities are producing the Transition Guide for Professionals. This will highlight the principles of transition and include the roles of the different agencies involved in the transition process.

Update on the Disabled Children Matter Wales Campaign

Edwina Hart Minister for Health has made a statement on wheelchair services acknowledging there is a problem. The DCMW Campaign were also quoted in the press in the residual publicity. 2 e mail updates have been sent out, including an election update highlighting that DCMW has written to all prospective parliamentary candidates in Wales asking them to sign a Constituency pledge to support disabled children and asking supporters to contribute to the discussion boards on the DCMW Facebook site. Keith Bowen from Contact a Family has also met with Huw Lewis Minister for Children. The Campaign have also produced a draft manifesto for the Assembly Elections next year. This will be finalised at an Advanced Campaign Training Day facilitated by Positif Politics in June.

Written copies of Children in Wales written evidence to the Children and Young People’s Inquiry into "Safe Places to Play and Hang Out" and the Health Wellbeing and Local Government Committee Inquiry into Wheelchair Provision was also shared with the Forum. Copies of both documents are available on the Members section of the website.

Information Exchange

Members also shared information about what is happening in each of their organisations.

Notes for December 2009

Notes for October 2009

Notes for June 2009