Children with Disabilities
Laburnum House
Children with disabilities are children first and foremost, and all services should ensure that children with disabilities:
- are able to remain within their own homes and communities, attending their local school and participating in out-of-school activities;
- have their needs comprehensively assessed and reviewed on a regular basis - and are provided with information about services available, so that they can take part as fully as possible in decisions that affect them, and can make use of local services wherever possible;
- receive services that are person-centred, flexible and responsive, according to their needs; that take account of the effects of disabilities on all the family; and that reflect successful collaboration between all the agencies involved.
Am I Entitled
The individual needs of children and young people with disabilities in Shetland are met by staff in several different agencies, including Social Care, Health, Education, Community Development and the voluntary sector.
If your child or another person in your home is disabled and this affects your child's care, you may be entitled to services from the Council. This includes children who have or are affected by a long term debilitating illness, including HIV/AIDS. You should first contact Social Care and ask about getting an assessment.
A Social Worker will arrange to meet you to discuss the best way forward. The welfare of the child or young person is central to this assessment, but as the whole family is affected by such issues, the whole family is involved in the process. With your consent the social worker may also wish to consult other professionals, such as your GP or your child's teacher.
What Happens Next
Once the assessment is complete and your family's needs have been identified, your social worker will discuss the outcomes with you and the resulting plan will be used to decide which services are best for you and for your family. Your family's needs may require the development of an Individual Care Plan, which will involve a number of different agencies, working together.
What Is Available
There is a range of services from Social Care which includes day care, home care, respite care and occupational therapy, including specialist aids and adaptations aimed at helping children lead lives which are as independent as possible.
Health Services offer a primary health care team - including general practitioners, a community pediatrician, occupational physiotherapist, speech therapist and access to other specialised support. Community nursing provides physical care and support. There is also a learning disability nurse who can offer advice on a wide range of topics, such as challenging behaviour, epilepsy monitoring, training, health promotion and screening, and general day to day care and practical management of children with learning disabilities.
The Special Needs System is a computer system which provides information on identification, assessment and monitoring of children with special needs; this helps with the planning and development of services.
Education services can provide priority admissions to nursery, the services of an educational psychologist, support to special needs departments in schools, and help with the provision of equipment.
They also employ specialist teachers and can offer help and support at home through an outreach scheme.
In the event of adaptations to property both Social Care and Housing can offer assistance through special schemes.
Children who have severe and complex educational needs may have their particular needs better met by specialist provision outside Shetland. This will also be discussed with you.
For further information please see our Leaflets page and the Other Organisations page.