19 July 2007

One Parent Families|Gingerbread has produced a booklet for lone parents bringing up disabled children. The booklet, The Lone Parents’ Guide to Caring for a Child with Additional Needs, gives advice and information about a range of issues, including ideas for play and leisure activities, and information about travelling with children who have disabilities that affect mobility. The booklet also covers guidance on employment rights, financial help and housing and education support, and includes extensive details about organisations that can offer further help and advice.

Twenty-seven per cent of lone parents have a sick or disabled child and, for many, the pressure is intense. They have to cope with a range of feelings and issues surrounding the health and welfare of their child, whilst enduring frequent exhaustion from the physical and emotional demands of raising a child with additional needs on their own.

Natasha Benenson,
Head of Direct Services at One Parent Families|Gingerbread says: “We are delighted that we can offer this service to help lone parents who are bringing up a child with additional needs. There is a desperate need for specialist help for the thousands of lone parents who are raising a disabled child. The information and support we provide can make a huge difference to peoples’ lives.”

To receive a copy of The Lone Parents’ Guide to Caring for a Child with Additional Needs, or to speak to one of the specialist advisers on our Disabled Child Project, lone parents should call the Lone Parent Helpline on 0800 018 5026 (Mondays to Fridays, 9am¬5pm, with extended opening on Wednesdays to 8pm). Lone parents can also get information from the One Parent Families|Gingerbread website, www.oneparentfamilies.org.uk/disabledchild, join a special on-line forum and sign up to receive a quarterly e-bulletin.