Children with additional needs
If your child has a health or developmental condition that is impacting on their everyday life, this is often referred to as an additional need. It may be that from birth your child has faced some extra challenges, or these may have become more obvious as your child has grown up.
Your child's additional needs could be developmental, physical, learning, behavioural or sensory. Their needs might be easily met with a regular plan of care or a creative approach to their management.
Some additional learning needs may continue throughout life and as a family there will be times you may require support from a number of services.
All children should have access to the right services, at the right time, to make sure they can reach their full potential.
Additional support need can be both long and short-term or can simply refer to the help a child or young person needs in getting through a difficult period. Additional support needs can be due to disability, or health, learning environment, family circumstances, social and emotional factors.
Further support for children with additional needs
- If you are looking for Spurgeons support, please use our referral form.
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Family Lives – provides information, advice, guidance and support on any aspect of parenting and family life. Their helpline number is 0808 800 2222
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Gingerbread – provides single parents with advice and practical support. You can call the Gingerbread Single Parent Helpline on 0808 802 0925
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Relate – provides relationship support, including help for children and young people and help with family life and parenting
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Single Parents – provides single parents with help, advice and support
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YoungMinds for Parents – provides advice about mental health and behaviour problems in children and young people. You can call the parents' helpline on 0808 802 5544
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Family Rights Group – provides parents or other relatives with advice about their rights and options when social workers or courts
Daily living with a disabled child
Your local authority is responsible for providing any non-medical care services your child is assessed as needing. This could include equipment for daily living, home care, access to play schemes, and respite care so that you can have a break.
To access services from your local authority, you'll need to ask for your child to have a needs assessment. Your needs, and the rest of your family's, can be considered during your child's assessment.
If the assessment doesn't address your needs as a carer, you can ask for your own carer's assessment.
Education legislation and guidance
The statutory requirements for safeguarding all children are set out in legislation and guidance for the education sector.
Although different terms are used in different nations, the principles of safeguarding and protecting young people and children with additional needs or disabilities are broadly the same.
Looking for support now?
Our growing Spurgeons Digital Family Hub, with always available online resources supporting families with parenting after separation, disordered eating, families affected by imprisonment and more...
Further useful links
Explore further organisations that can offer support across a range of parenting issues: