Debate contribution: Children’s Respite Services
Debate contribution by Mr Mike Nesbitt on .
- MLA
- Mr Mike Nesbitt
- Party at the time
- Ulster Unionist Party
- Date
- 5 May 2026
- Type
- Debate contribution (made as a minister)
- Business
- Oral Answers to Questions
- Heading
- Children’s Respite Services
- Assembly identifier
- Official Report component 5524660
Read the official Assembly record
Text
The additional regional funding provided for the children with disabilities service is being spent on a range of initiatives to improve family and community support for children with a disability, with the aim of increasing short-break provision and expanding specialist care programmes. The trusts have increased contracts with voluntary and community providers, securing additional support for families through a broad range of service initiatives. I remain very mindful of the urgent focus on overnight short-break provision for children with disabilities. However, it has to be recognised that the provision of short breaks for children with disability is much more expansive than solely overnight provision. I can confirm that there has been increased service provision across all five geographic trusts that has supported improved access to short breaks, either via day supports or overnight provision. I advise Members that, as a result of the children with disability investment, approximately 869 additional overnight short breaks were provided across the region between January 2025 and the end of January 2026. That is in addition to the development of a variety of valuable community and family support services that further enhanced children with disability services. Whilst the regional investment is beginning to address key areas, I need to reiterate to Members that short-break services for children with disabilities remain fragile. The longer-term development of a comprehensive continuum of services will take some time. It will be necessary to address the significant gap that exists in residential provision alongside preventative community-based services, in order to protect the availability of short-break services. Further sustained investment, in capital projects and workforce development, will be required over several years.
271 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.
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