Charity’s respite breaks end after funding cut

Respite breaks for children with disabilities will no longer be provided by a charity which has had its funding cut by the council.

Aireborough Supported Activities Scheme (ASAS) has organised residential breaks for young people in West Yorkshire with complex health conditions and special educational needs for the past 22 years.

Leeds City Council has reviewed its funding for respite care and said it would instead focus on supporting “more regular, accessible, and locally delivered” services.

However, Jo Galasso, project manager at ASAS said the change would have a “knock-on effect for families”.

“They often need that respite,” Ms Galasso said.

“They do things that the siblings like to do instead, or they just might need to relax and recuperate after their caring duty.”

She said she feared many would no longer get overnight respite care, or would not qualify for services supported by the council.

Laurie, 12, has autism and severe learning disabilities and has previously benefited from the charity’s respite breaks.

His family said his additional needs made it difficult for other people to offer overnight respite care, but he had attended ASAS weekends once a year.

“When you become a parent of a child like Laurie, you have to learn a lot about the disabilities and the way he experiences his disability,” his mum Charlotte said.

“It is very difficult to access care outside of anybody who knows him.

“It is very tiring, very mentally draining.”

ASAS breaks usually include activities such as adapted cycling, climbing, caving and canoeing.

Participants can also try gorge walking at inclusive residential activity centres across Yorkshire.

Laurie’s dad, Richard, said the breaks were “really important”.

“He cannot get many other places where they have the amount of staff and support and knowledge in place to support him,” he said.

“It also gives me and my wife and our daughter the chance to have a little bit of time, a little bit of a break away.

“Although we miss him dearly, it is quite an intense experience and having that time to have a bit of breathing space is really important.”

Leeds City Council carried out a review of respite services, with input from families, young people, providers, and practitioners, to ensure they remained relevant, a spokesperson said.

They said: “Feedback from families consistently highlighted a need for more regular, accessible, and locally delivered support throughout the year.

“In response, the council has introduced a new targeted short breaks model that prioritises weekend and school holiday sessions of at least four hours, delivered closer to home and tailored to individual needs.

“We are committed to using available resources to deliver the best impact and outcomes, ensuring the short breaks offer reaches more families, more often, and in ways that better meet their needs, especially those facing disadvantage or barriers to access.”

They said the breaks offered by ASAS had been valued and the council looked forward to “continuing to work with them under this new framework”.

ASAS said the charity had council funding for activity days and holiday play schemes until March 2026.

However, a final respite weekend planned for the same month would only go ahead if they found alternative funding.