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Help Active Impact shape the next edition of their ‘Guide to Short Breaks’ for families in Gloucestershire
Published
Active Impact supports inclusive opportunities for disabled and neurodivergent children across Gloucestershire, helping families access meaningful short break activities. Their updated ‘Guide to Short Breaks’ provides activity listings, support contacts, and practical advice. The charity is refreshing the guide for 2026 – 27 and invites Parent Carers here to share feedback.
Active Impact is a charity that has been working across Gloucestershire for over 15 years. We support children and young people’s activity providers to build high-quality, inclusive opportunities for disabled and neurodivergent children who require extra support to get involved. 
Short breaks
This work is part of a contract held by Active Impact, funded by Gloucestershire County Council (GCC), which supports and promotes the development of inclusive activities. So both child and Parent Carer can have a natural ‘short break’ in the same way as any other child. 
A ‘short break’ is any activity that a child with additional support needs can access. A short break has the aim of a child or young person having time away from their family and therefore creating time for Parent Carers to rest and recharge.  
Benefits for children, young people and their families
For families whose children find it difficult to get involved with mainstream clubs and activities, it is often not clear how best to find activities for them. These children and young people need activities that will help them grow in confidence and skills; help them make friends if they want to; and be away from caregivers for a few hours. 
For Parent Carers, often trying new things, and advocating for their child’s needs, can be confusing, worrying and exhausting.  Active Impact works hard to alleviate some of this stress. 
The Guide to Short Breaks
Our ‘Guide to Short Breaks’  puts information in parents’ hands, offering an introduction to a range of ways that the process can be made easier. 
The Guide includes: 
- listings of a range of activity providers across the county; 
- contact details for support organisations who can help you as a Parent Carer; 
- articles on what it is like to access a short break activity; 
- information on GCC’s statutory support services; 
- links to tools that can help, for example, the You’re Welcome website; and
- the perspectives of children, young people, and their Parent Carers.
To ensure that the Guide remains relevant and useful, Active Impact will be refreshing it for 2026 -27. Currently the charity is collaborating with stakeholders – including Parent Carers – to review its contents and parameters, and to ensure that the information in it is accurate. Active Impact would like to welcome all Parent Carers to share their opinions and observations on the guide, through the following form.
Active Impact wishes to add that the team is grateful for all feedback. Parent Carers are often time-poor, so they really appreciate your input. The team will continue to visit Parent Carer groups in 2026 and will be at the Gloucestershire Parent Carer Forum SEND Information Fair on Monday, 9 February at the Leonardo Hotel, Cheltenham and ask that you please stop and say hello! 
For more information on Active Impact and Short Breaks, please visit Gloucestershire’s Local Offer, Support for Families with SEND.