Website of the Department of Health

Emergency respite care

The Government is making an additional £25m available to local authorities in England to enhance the provision of short-term, home-based respite care to provide cover in the event of an emergency.

There is considerable evidence that the lack of proper planned alternative care provision, in the event of something untoward happening, is one of the most important factors in limiting a carer’s freedom to have a life of their own.

£25m will be made available to English local authorities from October 2007 for  the provision of such emergency respite care.  Guidelines to local authorites, developed with stakeholders, were published on 11 July 2007.

• Emergency respite care: Determination of funding additional to the Carers' Grant for 2007-08, and guidelines to local authorities