Insight on COVID-19: Support for vulnerable children
Download (PDF 248.44 KB)Summary of report content
Healthwatch Greenwich engaged with 5 groups working with families of children with additional needs about the support they received from the local authority during the Covid-19 pandemic.
The report looks at the experience of children with Education, Health and Care (EHC) plans, some of whom haven’t been able to go to school despite government guidelines. They found that families were struggling as care packages have ceased, respite care is not available, and they can't get help from extended family due to lockdown and social distancing. Children are finding it hard to adjust to the sudden change in routine.
The report also looks at other impacts of the pandemic on these families, including digital exclusion, lack of confidence to undertake home schooling, patchy support from schools for children with additional needs and limited support from groups and organisations that would usually offer support to families with additional needs.