Summary
SHIP Holiday Club provided 8 weeks of activities during school holidays to children and young people in Perthshire with ASN & disabilities to give their families and carers a much-needed break.
What Holiday club respite did
Over 2023/24 SHIP delivered 1 week of respite in April, October and Christmas holidays and 5 weeks through the Summer holidays, totalling 8 weeks of respite for parents/carers. The clubs ran from Fairview School and Glenearn community campus in Perth. The parent/carers were offered flexible respite slots; either half day sessions (3 hours) or full day sessions (1-4pm – 6 hours sessions) depending on their individual needs/requests. In total SHIP delivered 9687 hours of respite, supported 197 children & young people with complex ASN and supported 544 Parents/carers.
During the sessions the children & young people had a choice of activities to participate in such as music, sensory stories, cooking, art, sports, drama, sensory story times, yoga, judo, football, Zoolab, as well as community visits such as swimming, farm visits, Café and park visits. The children and families have said that the clubs have fully engaged the children, they have enjoyed making new friends and being active through the holidays.
These have positively impacted on family life with children being more settled at home and sleeping better. Families have spent time building relationships with other siblings and managing to get some precious ‘me time’ improving their mental wellbeing. Families have stated that using SHIP holiday clubs have allowed their other children to have their friends round to play. The siblings have stated that they have enjoyed this time, it has meant they have built stronger friendships and feel less isolated.
What Support Help and Integration in Perthshire (SCIO) has learned
We have learned that only through partnership working (parents/carers, schools, PKC disability team, NHS, PKC inclusion team and other third sector organisations) can we have the knowledge and expertise to run a quality reliable service that can meet the demands and needs of families. Families are the experts on what they require, so the only way of achieving a service that is relevant is to consult with them.
Also, having a well planned service and budget has helped us not to increase our costings too much. However there has been some unforeseeable increases that has been incurred i.e. cleaning costs, staff costs (due the needs of the young people). These costs are monitored closely so they don't impact future projects.
How Support Help and Integration in Perthshire (SCIO) has benefitted from the funding
The Better Breaks fund has given S.H.I.P the capacity to support families during school holidays. This critical time often poses challenges for families, as their routines are disrupted. The needs of the children & young people that attend S.H.I.P are very complex and require specialist experience & training, therefore they cannot attend main stream clubs. This reduces the opportunities for them and their carers (parents and siblings) to reach their full potential and families to get the break they require to carry on. We have been delighted and honoured to be supporting families through these challenging times and without the support of Better Breaks this would not have been possible. Running these clubs also gives our volunteers (aged 14 years +) an opportunity to give back to their local community whilst learning new skills that they will use for the rest of their lives.
Project Outcomes
Outcome
All 156 children will have enjoyed planned fun activities, made friends and accessed the local community
Results
We supported 198 children over the holiday clubs ensuring that the young people who attended had fun activities to participate in, and spent time with their friends. The children participated in active outdoor games, sensory play, Lego, story times, drama, dance sessions, yoga, sports, music & art. We had outside agencies coming in to do sessions for the children giving them unique experiences, such as Saints in the Community ran football coaching, Jodo sessions, Yoga, ‘Singing Rainbow’ a music/drama session, TAC Pak and bouncy castles. The children enjoyed trips to local parks and visiting the local swimming pool. The children and families were involved in the planning process of the clubs which meant that all activities were relevant to them. All the children reported they enjoyed seeing their friends, some made new friends, played games and felt less isolated. Families stated that their children were relaxed and enjoyed spending time with friends over the holiday periods.
Case study
‘My son loves his SHIP time. He gets to choose what he wants to do from a wide range of activities and these are adapted to his needs. He comes home smiling and happy after every session. He is encouraged to try new things, which he does for the SHIP team (never me!!) and wants to do them again at other times. He would be lost without his friends at SHIP. They send lots of pictures through the day which is great to see but helps me to ask him questions about what he has been up to.’
Outcome
We will have supported 410 parents/carers and siblings by giving them a break to enjoy life outside their caring role by offering flexible hours for holiday club.
Results
Over the project we supported 544 parents/carers and sibling. 100% of families have given positive feedback, stating that SHIP Holiday clubs has given them the opportunity to enjoy life outside their caring roles. Having a choice of half and full days gave them the flexibility to do different activities while their child was at the Holiday club. This allowed them to plan activities around when they most required help. 9687 hours of holiday respite was provided throughout the year, this was over 1 x weeks in April, 5 weeks in Summer, 1 x week in October and 10 half-day sessions in Christmas holidays. 100% of families stated that the sessions improved their mental well-being and gave them some breathing space to relax, spend time with family & friends and do hobbies.
Case study
“It made the holidays manageable for our whole family. The boys had some structure and access to peers and lots of fun activities that I wouldn’t have been able to provide them with. They are happy and love all the activities on offer. Being busy means they are more tired at night which means they sleep better, helping them and us. Them attending greatly reduced my stress levels and meant that I was able to attend appointments, attend to some household tasks and rest so that I was better able to look after them on non SHIP days. My husband and I also used one of the sessions to have some time together (we went fruit picking) which is rare.”
Outcome
Parents/carers will be involved in the planning process to ensure they are receiving respite when they most need it.
Results
All (544) carers and young carers benefited from having a well-run, reliable service to ensure they could have a break from their caring roles, according to survey’s sent out at the end of every holiday club session. Carers felt that having somewhere they could trust to look after their child’s complex needs allowed them to relax and be more ready for their caring role. Within the feedback forms parents/carers were asked to contribute to the planning of future clubs. They were asked what would be beneficial to themselves, their child(ren), when they needed clubs and the length of sessions. Families have appreciated being part of the process and their voices heard.
Parent/carers have welcomed being invited to the monthly committee meetings and coffee & chat sessions that give them the opportunity to contribute their ideas and have appreciated being listened to. Families stated they feel supported because they know they can call anytime for advice, a chat or information
Case study
'As a parent it is lovely to know that my child’s needs are being met during their sessions but it is also great to feel part of the process. The ideas I have given have been listened to and some of them implemented. I have attended a few of the ‘coffee and chat’ peer support sessions, which has made me realise I am not alone, other people are going through similar things. During these sessions we are asked by SHIP staff if there is any thing else they can do to support me and what I will need in the holidays. I feel the services provided are geared to the needs of its families and they try their best to help when they can. It is like a SHIP family, so inclusive.'
Outcome
The children and young people with disabilities will have experienced a wide variety of activities that will improve their life skills, social, emotional and physical wellbeing. The parents/carers and siblings will report less stress within their caring role.
Results
All children, young people and their families have been asked through surveys, observations and conversations regarding their wellbeing and 100% have reported they feel happier, less stressed in their caring role and less isolated therefore improving their wellbeing. They stated that holiday clubs allowed them to ‘have a break and engage with their other children and families, something that can be very hard to do when they are caring for someone with complex ASN/disabilities.’ All the Children and young people have experienced a wide range of experiences that have helped them to learn life skills(cooking, gardening, art, music, communication, transitioning between activities & places, managing behaviour) and social, emotional & physical wellbeing skills(sports, medication, yoga, taking turns, listening to others, making friends). These newly learned skills are helping family's home lives as children are transferring those skills. These are leading to improved well-being for families.
Case study
“It would be extremely challenging to manage without SHIP over the summer. Having time away from each other benefits both G and the rest of the family and provides time for me to foster my other child’s interests and to spend some 1:1 time together. Time at SHIP helps to structure her week and provides opportunities to socialise with her peers. This time is hugely beneficial for my mental health and allows me to cope better with the demands of my caring responsibilities.”