A mother facing challenges shared her emotional experience when her son was denied entry to a school summer club due to his special needs. Recent research by disability charity Sense indicates that only a small percentage of children with special educational needs and disabilities in England will receive support from holiday clubs this summer. Shockingly, one in 10 councils in England do not offer holiday clubs for disabled children in their regions, leaving over 61,000 children without access to such services.
The scarcity of support is compelling some parents to leave their jobs to provide full-time care, while others struggle to afford private assistance that can be costly. For Zoe Hodgson, a mother of two in Cardiff, the lack of inclusive holiday clubs makes the summer break challenging for her four-year-old son, Theo, who misses out on social interactions. Zoe is awaiting Theo’s official autism diagnosis, enduring long wait times for assessments. Despite understanding her son’s additional needs, Zoe emphasizes that Theo enjoys playing with toys and interacting with other children. Therefore, being turned away from a club she had paid for was a devastating experience for her.
Zoe had paid £150 for Theo to attend the holiday club, believing he had secured a spot after completing registration and payment. However, when she disclosed during drop-off that Theo was not yet toilet trained and wore pull-up nappies due to his autism, the staff informed her that they could not accommodate him. This refusal based on their policy left Zoe in tears, highlighting the difficulties faced by parents of children with disabilities during school breaks.
Another parent, Kathryn Mulroy, 37, from West Yorkshire, had to leave her job in mental health to support her three children, two of whom have special needs. Kathryn’s youngest son, diagnosed with autism and a severe learning disability, and her daughter, diagnosed with autism and a learning disability, require specialized care that is not readily available in holiday clubs, unlike her neurotypical son, Ashton.
The report from Sense underscores the challenges many parent carers encounter in finding suitable holiday clubs for their disabled children, impacting their finances, employment, and mental well-being. The varying levels of support provided by local authorities create a significant disparity in services, leading to children with special needs being unfairly excluded from holiday activities available to their peers. The organization urges parents to seek assessment for children’s social care support to access appropriate services.
In response to these issues, the Department of Education has allocated substantial funding to the Holiday Activities and Food (HAF) program to ensure children, including those with SEND, have access to enriching activities and meals during the summer. Families can also benefit from discounts and free bus travel through the Great British Summer Saving scheme. The government expects councils to collaborate with providers to include children with SEND in holiday programs to prevent any child from missing out on opportunities for socialization and fun.