Help shape our short breaks service for children and young people in Buckinghamshire

Overview

We want to hear your views and experiences of our short breaks service for children and young people in Buckinghamshire.

We help children and young people with disabilities, and their families and carers, by providing access to short breaks.

Short breaks are sometimes called respite care.

Short breaks give:

• children and young people with disabilities time away from their family, so they can develop independence, learn new skills and make friends
• parents and carers a break from caring responsibilities

We know that what works for one family may not work for another. That’s why we want to think differently about short breaks – looking beyond what is currently available and exploring more flexible, creative and personalised options.

There are no changes to services whilst we carry out our review.

Shaping our future short breaks services

We are reviewing our short breaks services so they better meet families’ needs. Our review of the services includes understanding:

• whether the service meets current needs
• what’s working, what isn’t and areas for improvement
• whether changes are needed

There are no changes to services whilst we carry out our review.

Through this survey, we want to hear from parents and carers, and children and young people, to help us develop the future short breaks service. You do not have to have used the short breaks service to have your say.

Events

We are holding several in-person and online events with children and young people, parents and carers, professionals and partners.

This includes three drop-in sessions for parents and carers hosted by FACT Bucks. These are friendly, informal drop-in sessions where parents and carers are welcome to attend with their children. Come along to meet the team, ask questions and find out more. The drop-in sessions are on the following days and times:

• Chesham – Wednesday, 22 July, 11.00 – 13.00, Newtown Family Hub, Chesham
• High Wycombe – Monday, 3 August 10.00 – 12.00, Mapledean Family Centre, High Wycombe
• Aylesbury – Wednesday, 5 August, 10.00 – 12.00, Southcourt Family Hub, Aylesbury

We are also holding an online information session on Tuesday 4 August from 6pm to 7pm. If you would like to join this session, please email Beth@FactBucks.org.uk.

How to have your say

You can tell us your views in one of the following ways:

• attend a virtual or in-person session
• complete the online survey using the link at the end of the page
• complete, and return, an Easy Read version of the survey (PDF 3.63MB)
• email us at CYPMHDA-Feedback@Buckinghamshire.gov.uk
• write to us at CYP Mental Health, Autism and Disabilities Team, 5^th Floor, Walton Street Offices, Walton Street, Aylesbury, HP20 1UA

If you have any questions about this activity, or require this information in another format or language, please email us at CYPMHDA-Feedback@Buckinghamshire.gov.uk.

Prefer to speak to us? Email CYPMHDA-Feedback@Buckinghamshire.gov.uk with your telephone number and we will get back to you within three working days.

Children and young people are welcome to complete this survey themselves. However, if the child or young person is under the age of 13, we ask that this is done with the support or supervision of a parent or carer. This helps ensure that children can share their views safely and comfortably, in a way that works best for them.

Please tell us your views by 11:59pm on Sunday 13 September 2026.

What happens next

Feedback from this engagement activity will be carefully collated and analysed to understand what is working well, what needs to change, and what matters most to children, young people, families and stakeholders. This insight will directly inform the review of the Short Breaks service by shaping future options and priorities.

If any changes are going to be proposed to the service following this engagement, prior to making changes we will hold a consultation later this year on the future options and priorities to ensure the voices of children and young people, families and carers, and key partners are clearly heard and reflected, so the service continues to meet the needs of the local community.

Privacy

We will use the information you provide here only for this activity. We will store the information securely in line with data protection laws and will not share or publish any personal details. Survey responses will be analysed using Microsoft products including Copilot, Excel and Word. For more information about data and privacy, please see our Privacy Policy.

If you have questions about data and privacy, please email us on dataprotection@buckinghamshire.gov.uk or write to our Data Protection Officer at Buckinghamshire Council, The Gateway, Gatehouse Road, Aylesbury, HP19 8FF.