Foster Care Short Breaks (Staycation)

Dudley is seeking to commence a Foster Care Short Breaks service for children and young people with disabilities and complex health needs in Dudley. In Dudley this service is often referred to by families as a Staycation.

The Council will evaluate the award of the Agreement on the basis of the most economically advantageous Tender and reserves the right to make contract awards to no more than 3 successful Tenderers, this will form a framework, where referrals will be shared by Dudley to the providers, and the best fit will be sourced for the child/young person requiring the staycation. The Council reserves the right, subject to relevant legislation, at any time to reject any Tender.

All disabled children are considered to be a child 'in need' (see section 17 of the Children Act 1989) and therefore the Local Authority has a general duty to safeguard and promote their welfare by providing a range and level of services appropriate to their needs. If a disabled child or their parent requests an assessment then there is a duty to assess in each case, including any needs for carer support.

The Children Act 1989 and the Breaks for Carers of Disabled Children Regulations 2011 require local authorities to provide services designed to give breaks for carers of children with disabilities. The break should enhance the ability of parent carers to care for their disabled child and any other children they may have.

Short break provision must have regard to the needs of carers who would be unable to continue to provide care unless breaks from caring were given to them, as well as the needs of those carers who would be able to provide care more effectively if breaks from caring allowed them to undertake education and training, leisure activities or carry out day to day tasks.

In meeting our duties to promote the welfare and safeguard children and young people, we also want to ensure that our short breaks offer, helps to support a child or young person's social and emotional development as well as providing them with new experiences and an opportunity to learn new skills. It is important that the short break gives the young person the opportunity to develop their independence in preparation for adulthood. Overnight short breaks can be provided by local authorities under: o section 17(6) of the 1989 Act, which grants local authorities a power to provide accommodation as part of a range of services in order to discharge their general duty to safeguard and promote the welfare of children in need; and o section 20(4) of the 1989 Act, which grants local authorities a power to provide accommodation 'for any child within their area (even though a person who has parental responsibility for him/her is able to provide him/her with accommodation) if they consider that to do so would safeguard or promote the child's welfare'.