Travelling abroad PLEASE HELP

Hi Sue. When I was working as a social worker I had a client (elderly lady) who had a son in his early 40’s, with special needs/unclear diagnosis, he came from South Africa where he had never really had a diagnosis but it was more like autism. Anyway, to cut a long story short, he had never travelled on public transport alone, and had been heavily shielded by his Mum but he wanted to travel back to South Africa for a visit and to see family, and he managed the trip really well. As a side note, I got involved with his care because the authorities wanted to put him in a residential home as his mother has dementia and wasn’t able to do as much for him anymore. Again, long story short, I fought for him to stay at home and to get him some support that was going to help him because as I argued and as I proved, they didn’t have the right to say he couldn’t manage if he never been given the opportunity and given the opportunity he managed very well. I think we have to enable and empower people to take positive risks. And as moggsy said, the airlines are usually happy to provide support. 

Also, my friend’s son, who does use public transport by himself (he’s about 19), but has never been abroad by himself, is going to Japan this year by himself. He’s got a fascination with Japan so his mum suggested his go and he thought that was a great idea so he arranged it, with his mums help. He would only do something like this if it was related to his special interest. And I’m the same, if something has meaning in it for me, I can usually do really well with all the tasks etc, yet I often struggle to make myself something to eat and my son wonders how I get through a day without help! Lol! 

I could do with your daughters help when I get my new puppy. I want to train him really well so I’ll be getting into this thing soon. 

I would definitely encourage your daughter to go. Maybe find out as much as you can about where she’ll be staying etc, ask for somebody to be there to greet her. Get help with the flights etc. Arrange transfers to the hotel etc. Keep in touch with her etc. Think of all the risks so you can put measures in place etc if necessary. Have things written down, clearly but simply, in a way that she prefers. For example, I like little flow chart things. And as moggsy said, talk to her about it, practice scenarios etc if necessary, just so you both feel comfortable. But I would say, if it’s related to our special intetest, we will be able to do pretty much anything.  

thank you I'll have it all broken down to the finest detail I just wish they provided travel chaperone. Any questions about your new puppy Cerys will try her best to answer I'm sure.  She soon to go to puppy classes though she. Outdoor run them herself the amount of knowledge she has lol 

thank you I'll have it all broken down to the finest detail I just wish they provided travel chaperone. Any questions about your new puppy Cerys will try her best to answer I'm sure.  She soon to go to puppy classes though she. Outdoor run them herself the amount of knowledge she has lol 

Ah, she’s so lucky, and so are you, you both are. You light up when you talk about her. When is she going? You could contact social services. With the introduction of the new care act, a diagnosis is no longer required to get access to health and social care support and anybody who presents with a need, or even asks for an assessment, has to by law, be offered one. Your daughters need would be for support to pursue a treasured activity, which may even result in a career in the field. The support would be to help minimise the risks of her taking her first trip, by herself, anywhere. Without this interest she would become isolated and it would lead to a deterioration in her wellbeing. You would have to look on line at their criteria etc, but it is vital to think outside the box, and the care act enables that, even if all authorities don’t follow it. Regardless of whether they follow it or not, your daughter has rights and you can use the law to ensure her rights are upheld. They often have an electronic system of working out how much money a person will be offered to meet their needs. However, this is only indicative. Local authorities are no longer a service lead system. If a person has needs, that fall into a certain category, with relevant risk, they will be offered a certain amount of money, a personal budget, to meet those needs. However, if the amount doesn’t cover what you might need, to meet the needs, the amount they offer can be increased. If a person is offered a personal budget, they will then be financially assessed to see if they have to contribute. The money can be received and used in several ways. In this case, they might argue that a chaperone isn’t necessary because she can attend courses in the U.K. but that’s discriminatory. You can usually always (I’ll have to check up on this) complete the assessment by yourselves. It might be worth considering this option, to get some financial assistance towards a chaperone, via social services. I’m just st thinking off the top of my head, but I’ve got money for people to go on holiday and all sorts over the years. I simply used to use the law in benefit of my client and it couldn’t be denied and the new care act places a lot of emphasis on wellbeing, it takes a more holistic approach, and is more about prevention than the cure. I’m not saying this is how it works in all areas, but when faced with the law, they have to comply. I would have to look at coatings, benefits, risks etc related to the particular authorities criteria, which is pretty wide now, since the new care act but they do still have boundaries.