Report: Children and young people's palliative care

Care Forum Report: Children and young people's palliative care - Findings of the south west voluntary sector providers reference group

The report can be found here

 The conclusion follows here:

Since the publication of "Better Care, Better Lives" in 2007 many services for children and young people with life-limiting conditions and their families have developed positively as a result of improvements to the funding regime and better communication between agencies. The improvements that have been made are not on a secure footing owing to economic instability and organisational restructuring.

Communication, transparency, inter-agency and cross-agency working, localised and tailored services and child and family-centred care packages all go some way towards improving the quality of life for children and young people with life-limiting illness and their families.

The testimonies of families at our Square Table showed that at the heart of palliative care services there is an individual child or young person and a family. It is support from the statutory sector and VCS that can make a real difference to their quality of life.

This report demonstrates that the need for meaningful dialogue between the VCS and the statutory sector has never been greater if the needs of children, young people and their families are to be at the centre of future care planning and funding.