Summary
A twelve day Glasgow based holiday programme (three days during the Easter break and nine days during the Summer holidays) for young people, aged 11-18, with complex support needs. We provided a choice of activities and trips: enabling the young people to have fun whilst their carers had a break.
What DASH Club Holiday Breaks did
We delivered a twelve day holiday programme for young people with complex support needs: three days at Easter & nine days at the start of the summer break. Activities at “base” included: dance, a Storyteller, and hydrotherapy. Outings included: visits to parks, a canal boat trip, kayaking, the outdoor pool at Gourock, and Five Sister’s Zoo.
The programme was based at Broomlea Primary School in North West Glasgow which has excellent facilities. Outings were in and near to Glasgow. The day ran from 9.30-3pm with three extended days (to 4pm) .
All of the young people who attended the holiday programme were members of our after-school club and parents were asked well in advance if they wanted their child to attend, and on what days. We also asked them what activities they thought their child would enjoy and what they wouldn’t. Similarly we asked the young people directly what activities they wanted to do.
This enabled us to design the programme so as to ensure that every child’s needs could be met. We were able to accommodate all club members who requested a place on the programme.
Carers reported spending their time in different ways: spending time with our family members, completing household chores, visiting people and places they couldn’t normally visit and “just relaxing and having time to myself”.
We visited new venues (eg. Five Sister’s Zoo) during the planning phase, this enabled us to be well prepared for the visit with staff fully briefed on what to expect. We held a day’s training on Movement & Handling at the start of the summer programme.
A highlight was the kayaking. Our concerns that it might be too challenging for the young people were quickly dissipated, and staff reported that “it was the best thing they’d ever done with DASH”.
All went to plan. However, there is always room for improvement, and after the spring programme we consulted with staff and implemented some organisational changes that they suggested for the summer programme. These changes reduced the “stress” of supporting an intense programme that requires staff to be constantly alert.
Our project addressed Better Breaks priorities 1- 5
What The DASH Club has learned
We introduced canoeing as an activity for the first time during the programme. We did so with some trepidation as we weren't sure how the young people would respond. However, it was probably the favourite activity for both the young people and staff, and we learnt that it's always worth trying something.
The staff enjoyed a lot of the activities as much as the young people and this lent the programme considerable energy and heightened the experience for all.
We used some of the budget for researching new activities - for example a visit to Five Sister's Zoo. As a result of a visit to scope out the zoo, note its facilities and talk to the staff there, we were able to plan a much more successful visit than if we had just turned up on the day.
How The DASH Club has benefitted from the funding
We always learn from our holiday programme - it builds the capacity of both our staff and us as an organisation. For the staff it's an opportunity to develop their relationships with the young people, particularly those they don't know very well, and it strengths.
We always come out of the programme stronger as a team which benefits our after-school programme.
Project Outcomes
Outcome
Young people with complex support needs will have taken part in a variety of fun, stimulating activities over the spring and summer breaks. They will have made new friends, and will be more confident/motivated to join in the activities that form our core term-time programme.
Results
The outcome was fully achieved. The young people all took part in a wide range of activities and had a lot fun. The programme ran on sequential days and for most of the day (9.30-3pm), and whilst we did different things each day , there was a familiar structure to each day (eg. starting from the base, "play-time" at the end of the day) which enabled the young people to relax. Familiarity with our staff, and the staff's already established relationships with the young people was another key factor in the young people being able to fully enjoy the activities. The activities were very sociable with plenty of opportunities for interacting with one another and developing new (and old) friendships.
We're now a 5 weeks in to our after-school club sessions this term, and we can see the impact of the summer programme by the confidence and eagerness with which the young people returned to the club, and how as a group they are closer with a greater understanding of one another.
Case study
H. is 13. He is on the autistic spectrum, and a visual impairment and doesn't like loud, sudden noises. The first day that H came to the holiday programme, he was very shy and anxious. He didn't want to join in any of the group activities but instead asked to be taken to a quiet corner. Towards the end of the day H. suddenly asked if he could go out on the bicycles and for the last hour joined with a group riding bikes.
Over the course of holiday programme, H. gradually became more confident. We always gave him choices as to what he wanted to do, and the option of sitting quietly on his own. However, he almost always wanted to join in the activities, especially if his new friend F. was taking part. F. is non-verbal whilst H. is chatty and relatively articulate. He and F. were able to communicate with no difficulty, running up to one another in the morning to exchange greetings and regularly checking in with each other throughout the day.
A few weeks after the end of the holiday programme H's mum sent us a video of H. talking about the programme and how much he had enjoyed it. He now comes to our after-school club and is happy and relaxed. F. is still his best friend.
Outcome
Carers will have had a chance to relax & spend time focusing on themselves and their other family members. The programme will reduce the amount of challenging behaviour that can accompany the holiday periods, and therefore some of the stress of the more intensive care required during the holidays.
Results
We were able to fully realise the outcome by providing 12 day of holiday programme running between 9.30 and 3pm with pick-up and drop-off affording extra respite time. Two days were extended to 4pm so as to travel further afield for activities. In all we provided over 1,575 hours of respite to the carers and their families. Having a structure helped the young people transition from school to the relatively unstructured days of the holidays - something many of the young people struggle with as they like familiarity and routine. Carers told us that their children came home during the programme, happy and relaxed, often tired from an energetic day and so more ready to sleep.
Case study
K. turned 17 during the programme. He is on the autistic spectrum and has severe learning difficulties. He can speak a few words but when frustrated will express himself physically, and if upset can scratch or bite. He is most challenging when in the home, and as a result his family had no social life, and the health and wellbeing of the whole family was suffering This has particularly affected his younger sister as she has never been able to do the kinds of things with her family that most families do such as: going swimming, to the cinema or on holiday.
We were able to take K. for 11 of the 12 days of the programme and this enabled the rest of the family to spend time together both in and out of the house. K's mother told us how much she had enjoyed having an evening out with her husband and daughter for the first time in many years. Following the holiday programme K's family were able to obtain further respite and the health and wellbeing of all has improved.
Outcome
Carers will have been able to spend time over the spring and summer holidays with friends and families - engaging in activities that they aren’t usually able to access in their caring role.
Results
We met achieved the outcome by providing up to twelve days of respite, with over 6 hours of "free time" each day. This time enabled the carers and their families to access activities they usually can't when caring for their child with complex needs.
Case study
C. is 14 and autistic. He has a brother who lives in Edinburgh and his mother is rarely able to travel to Edinburgh to see him. During the summer programme his mother used the long periods of respite to spend time with her other son. She was also able to work longer hours in her part-time job and increase the family's income.
Outcome
The carers will been able to “recharge their batteries” over the spring and summer breaks, and as a result be more able to sustain their caring role throughout the year.
Results
We achieved the project outcome by providing up to 12 days of respite during the holiday periods. Looking after a child with complex needs is very intensive and it can be hard to complete tasks or fully relax as they need constant attention.
Knowing that their child was at DASH : safe and enjoying themselves, enabled the carers to rest and spend time focusing on their own needs, it gave them the "head space" they needed to recharge, and made managing the rest of the summer holidays easier.
Case study
P. is 13, with autism and learning difficulties. He's very excitable and is demanding of his mother's attention which can make the school holidays exhausting. P. came to most of the summer programme and his mother said it gave her a chance to rest and relax. Whilst the remainder of the summer was still demanding , it felt much less daunting than in previous years when she had to care for P. every day of the holidays.