The 2011 joint brochure from Me-and-Us and BodySense gives details of sexual health and relationships resources for use with people with learning disabilities. View the brochure or order a printed copy at www.me-and-us.co.uk

Resources include:
Periods - a Practical Guide.
SHARE Special, an SRE Curriculum for Young People with Special Needs.
Sexual Knowledge and Behaviour, an Assessment Tool.
Hilary Dixon's Confident in SRE, A Guide for Trainers and Educators.
Songs for Your Body.
Desmond and Daisy and the updated model of Wendy, female genitalia and reproductive organs.

Cool2Care has been awarded the Social Enterprise Mark

Cool2Care has been awarded the Social Enterprise Mark, which identifies them as trading for social and environmental purposes.

The Social Enterprise Mark is the brand for social enterprises and was launched 1st February, 2010. The Mark identifies businesses which meet defined criteria for social enterprise, and consumers will recognise that businesses displaying the Mark are trading to benefit people and planet.

Social enterprises are working to make a difference across the UK and beyond, but not enough people know what they are or how they work. The Social Enterprise Mark aims to raise awareness of what social enterprises do in order to get more people to buy from, engage with, start up and work for social enterprises.

Cool2Care acts as an introductory service for families with disabled children and young adults, providing screened and trained care-workers to support them either at home or out in the community. We operate across England and any profits generated are either reinvested or go towards supporting charities for disabled children.

For more information please contact:
Vikki Croxson, Marketing Manager, Cool2Care on 0845 123 5484 (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.)
or Anne Mountjoy on 07812 029 228 or
(This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.)

Visit: http://www.cool2care.co.uk/news.asp

Cemented to the floor by law: Respecting legal duties in a time of cuts is written by Steve Broach, Barrister for Doughty Street Chambers, and endorsed by CDC.

It is essential reading for all commissioners, managers and professionals working in local authorities, Primary Care Trusts (PCTs) and other public bodies, particularly given the rise in spending cuts and their impact on disabled children's services. The paper includes some of the most important legal duties to consider when funding decisions are being taken and outlines the distinction between local authorities’ duties and powers when making decisions about services.

Contact: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

CT has launched a new updated version of its popular booklet, A Family Companion to the ACT Care Pathway, which is now available free to family members of children with life-limiting and life-threatening conditions, and children’s palliative care professionals. To make this resource as accessible and as widely available as possible, ACT has produced the Family Companion in a range of different formats.

A Family Companion to the ACT Care Pathway is designed especially for family members of children with life-limiting and life-threatening conditions, to help guide them through the stages of their child’s care following diagnosis. It gives them useful information about what should happen, and what they are entitled to; empowering them to make decisions regarding their child’s care.

Funding from the Department of Health has enabled ACT to develop this resource and to offer a limited number of free printed copies to families and professionals*. Additionally anyone can now download a copy from the ACT website – www.act.org.uk/familycompanion

The resource has been updated for 2011, making it broader and relevant to more families, wherever they live. The new version also includes a more extensive ‘useful organisations’ section, building on the previous list of organisations that families can turn to for more specific support or advice.

The funding has also meant that A Family Companion is now available in various formats, to help ensure as many families as possible get a chance to access it:

Hard copy booklet

This is free to all family members. Children’s palliative care professionals can order a free copy to use with families, to help guide them through their child’s care journey. Organisations can now order up to ten copies at a time to have in stock to hand out to families, without the families having to order from ACT.
To order a free copy, email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., call ACT on 0117 916 6422 or download an order form from www.act.org.uk/familycompanion

Downloadable interactive PDF of full booklet

An interactive PDF of the booklet with linked contents page for ease of use, is now available to download from the ACT website www.act.org.uk/familycompanion

Separate downloadable PDFs for each stage of the ACT care pathway

Sometimes, families of children who have just been diagnosed may feel they are not ready to think about later stages of their child’s care, such as end of life planning. For this reason, we have also made A Family Companion available as five separate sections: Sharing significant news; planning for going home; a multi-agency assessment and care plan; an end of life care plan; and a separate directory including a glossary of terms, a list of professionals, and a list of useful organisations.

This will enable parents to digest information at their own pace, without feeling overwhelmed by what might happen in the future. Professionals can also download separate sections to give to parents if they feel the parents are not ready to start using the full version. Download all the sections separately at www.act.org.uk/familycompanion