Children with Disabilities Team

Eligibility Criteria

The Children with Disabilities Team (CWD) work to the definition of a disabled child in section 17 (11) of the Children Act 1989 and the Equality Act 2010):

‘a child is disabled if he is blind, deaf or dumb, or suffers from a mental disorder of any kind or is substantially and permanently handicapped by illness, injury or congenital deformity or such other disability as may be prescribed’.

Local Authorities have a specific duty under section 2 of the Chronically Sick and Disabled Persons Act 1970 to provide a wide range of services, encompassing almost every social service that a disabled child is likely to need apart from residential short breaks, if the local authority is satisfied that such a service is “necessary in order to meet the needs of that person.” The duty under section 2 applies to disabled children as well as disabled adults.

The Equality Act 2010 gives extra protection from discrimination to disabled children and young people:

Public and private services (including schools and leisure facilities) and employers have to take action to ensure young disabled people have the same access as people who are not disabled. This might include ramps, accessible lifts and toilets, automatic doors and making information available in large writing or Braille. This is called making “reasonable adjustments”.

The CWD Team will carry out an assessment where the child has:

• a substantial/severe learning disability
• a long term or permanent physical disability which seriously limits activities of daily life
• a chronic or life threatening/life limiting illness
• a profound loss of hearing that significantly affects the child's educational and social development and requires substantial, or very substantial support
• a non-correctable loss of vision, whether it's complete blindness or partial vision loss that significantly affects the child's educational and social development.
• a substantial developmental delay, where there is evidence that the child's activities, physical, social or educational are seriously limited
• a diagnosis of Autistic Spectrum Disorder (ASD), where the ASD affects the child's developmental progress significantly, i.e. where the child requires substantial or very substantial support and/or is educated at a specialist school. A diagnosis is not essential; however independent verification of the presentation of the child will be required
• an Education, Health and Care Plan which requires significant support within the school/college environment and the child would not be able to attend without social care involvement
• specialist pre-school intervention e.g. Early Years SEN support
• multiple disabilities/difficulties. Where a child has a combination of disabilities that individually may not be regarded as severe

Although ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder) is, in and of itself, not classed as a disability, the same criteria apply as for Austism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) where the ADHD affects the child's developmental progress significantly, i.e. where the child requires substantial or very substantial support and/or is educated at a specialist school. A child must have measurable functional impairments.

The CWD team will not routinely work with:

• a child with a medical condition which is not permanent or severe
• a child with social, emotional and behavioural, mental health or wellbeing difficulties
• a child with ASD or ADHD, where there is no significant impact on the child's developmental progress as a direct result of the ASD, or ADHD
• where a child has disabilities that appear to meet the threshold for intervention by CWD, the child and family will be offered an assessment under section 17 Children Act (1989) to determine whether the criteria for CWD are met and whether the services offered by CWD are appropriate for this child and family

Please note; the eligibility criteria must be met in order to receive paid services. The eligibility criteria will be applied and it is only once this is met that a child/young person will be assessed and presented to the Resource Allocation Panel that makes the decision on financial care packages.

Where a child does not meet the criteria for services from CWD, the parents will receive advice and information about what services may be more appropriate.

For example: a child with ASD without a learning disability who also has diagnoses of mental health issues would be signposted to the Southend, Essex and Thurrock Child and Adolescents Mental Health Service (SET CAMHS who provide advice and support to children, young people and families who are in need of support with their emotional wellbeing or mental health difficulties.