Community care lawyers Paul Bowen and Luke Clements carried out research into the law on behalf of the Every Disabled Child Matters (EDCM) campaign. They found under sections 20(1) and 17 of the Children Act 1989 and sections 2 and 28A of the Chronically Sick and Disabled Persons Act 1970, a right to short breaks could already exist. EDCM is now looking for families to take forward legal test cases.
The opinion was published yesterday (13 November) as EDCM launched its proposed Disabled Children (Family Support) Bill 2007.
Steve Broach, EDCM's campaign manager, said the analysis made interesting reading. "If we consider taking various pieces of current legislation together these rights already exist," he said. "I'm interested in the reaction of local authorities because in our experience they may not be aware of the impact of the Chronically Sick and Disabled Persons Act 1970. I'm interested to get feedback on whether they are operating within that Act."
Bowen and Clements are calling for new laws to give families a clear right to support.
