Shared Care
What Makes You Feel Great at the Weekend?
Would you like to make a difference to a Glasgow family by providing respite care in your own home, one weekend every month, for a child with a disability?
Shared Carers provide a vital service to families in the community, letting them have much-needed time for themselves and to spend time with their other children and family members.
Children who benefit from our Shared Care service have a range of disabilities. They may be on the autistic spectrum, have physical and / or learning disabilities, communication difficulties or other complex health needs.
Shared Carers look after the same child every month, building a relationship with the child and his or her family. Our Shared Carers really enjoy spending one weekend a month knowing that they are making a real difference.
Many of the tasks involved in caring for children with a disability are the same as required for carers of all children and young people, although children with a disability also have additional needs.
An allowance is paid and full training and support is given. Shared Carers often work full-time and enjoy doing something different one weekend a month.
‘My partner and I both work full-time and easily fit being Shared Carers into our lives. Our own son is older now, so we really look forward to our weekends as shared carers – who else are we going to take to see Toy Story? We have lots of fun and get a great deal of satisfaction from it. We have built up really good relationship with the children’s families too and we know how much they value what we do. ’ Alison Punton, Shared Carer.
Shared Care Plus
For those with more time to give, we also need carers for Shared Care Plus.
Shared Care Plus carers offer respite for children with a greater level of disability and/or complex needs. Linked to two to four children, Shared Care Plus carers offer each child around 42 nights of care per year usually at weekends and perhaps a week during the school holidays if possible.
A nightly allowance plus fee is paid.
Everyone needs a break from time to time. Could you help families in Glasgow by making a positive difference to a child with a disability?
If you are over 21, patient and caring, and would like to enhance a family’s quality of life, please phone 0845 270 0609 or email families.children@sw.glasgow.gov.uk