A CEREDIGION charity is launching a respite care package for families in need during the school holidays.

DASH Ceredigion, a well-established charity which supports local disabled children and young people and their families, normally provides leisure schemes to give disabled children and young people the opportunity to enjoy a variety of activities, have fun with friends, and develop independent living skills.

Families are also able to access respite care and support through DASH.

Since lockdown, they have not been able to provide their usual leisure schemes because of the Covid-19 pandemic. However, they have continued working throughout lockdown, providing doorstep support for shopping and medication deliveries, video chat sessions and support for families through social media.

And they have an exciting new scheme this summer.

Their new manager Ben Freeman told the Cambrian News: “We can now announce our respite care package for families in great need, which will be running during the school summer holidays.

“This year, we will be running up to six weeks of respite care days for a small number of families at two sites in the north and south of Ceredigion.

“Our dedicated and fully trained staff will be providing care for very small groups of children and young people in line with current coronavirus guidelines.

“We have been working closely with Ceredigion County Council and Tim Plant Anabl to identify families who would most benefit from our support at this difficult time.

“Please note that we are only running our respite scheme for families in great need this summer.

“We are disappointed that we will not be able to run our usual programme of leisure schemes this season due to the coronavirus restrictions, but we do hope to restart to our usual leisure schemes as soon as we can, and we look forward to welcoming families new and old back once this is over.”

Ben hit the ground running when he started in his post a mere two weeks before lockdown.

Ben has many years’ experience working with disabled children and young people in schools and care settings across Ceredigion. He first worked with DASH as a support worker in 2000. Ben lives near Borth with his family.

He said: “After rather an eventful and interesting first few months, I am looking forward to working with Gail, Alison, Pam and all the rest of the hard-working and skilled team in continuing and developing the opportunities that DASH provides.”

The charity has had support from local MP Ben Lake, who said: “DASH is an incredibly active charity in Ceredigion, providing vital support to disabled children and young people across the county.

“We know that Covid-19 is having a significant impact on our young people, and charities such as DASH Ceredigion are to be commended for their hard work in adapting to the challenges posed by the pandemic, and for ensuring that disabled children and young people, in addition to their families, are supported during this difficult time.”

To help DASH, visit their JustGiving site at https://localgiving.org/charity/dash-­disabilities-and-self-help/

DASH is also looking for new trustees. If you are interested, email becomeatrustee@­dashceredigion.org.uk