Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Children’s Disability Network Teams (CDNTs) work as ‘interdisciplinary’ teams. This means that team members share information, decision-making, and goal setting on each case they work on together. They work with the child and their family to write a support plan called an Individual Family Support Plan (IFSP).
The service involves a range of supports which might look like any of the following:
- Home visits
- School visits
- Group work (with children with similar needs; or parents facing similar challenges)
- Supporting AON (Assessment of Need) assessments
- Meeting with other services or people supporting your child and family (for example, schools, hospitals, family support workers, local community supports)
- One-to-one therapy, when needed
The model of service is guided by an international best practice called family-centred practice.
Family-centred practice is considered the best way to support the development, learning, and wellbeing of children with complex needs arising from a disability.
Family-centred practice recognises that:
- each family, and their circumstances, is unique
- family members are the most constant people in a child’s life and
- family members are the experts on their child.
Family-centred practice recognises that all children develop and learn through taking part in daily life and activities with their family, and at school or pre-school. Your CDNT will support you to make the most of these everyday learning opportunities to help your child to reach their full potential.
Your CDNT will work with you to equip you with the resources you need to meet your chosen goals within the family and/or school environment. You will work with your CDNT to identify those goals and they will be included in your Individual Family Support Plan (IFSP).
Family-centred practice is a much more effective way to work with you, your child and family. It focuses on supporting the adults who have the deepest relationships and spend the most time with a child to have the skills to provide intervention on an ongoing basis. For example, close family members, preschool and crèche teachers, teachers, childminders and grandparents. It’s what happens outside therapy sessions that makes the difference.
An Individual Family Support Plan (IFSP) sets out the main goals you and your family have for your child. These goals may change over time, as your child gets older. They will reflect elements of family life, school life, or community involvement that you want to support your child to be involved with as much as possible.
When you meet with a clinician to discuss your first IFSP, you will work together to identify what those main goals are. Examples of these goals could be:
- trying different strategies (detailed plans) to help food shopping be an enjoyable activity for the whole family
- trying different strategies to support better sleep for your child and the whole family
- preparing your child for going to a new school
To help you prepare for your first IFSP meeting, think about what your child is good at and what they enjoy, as well as what they find difficult. Some questions worth considering are:
- What is the priority for our child and family now?
- What have we tried already? Was this successful?
- How can we work on this priority?
- Is this the best time to work on this goal for us as a family?
Sometimes, a child moves from a Primary Care Team (PCT) to a CDNT (Children s Disability Network Team). This might happen because the Primary Care Team decides that a CDNT would be better able to support the child’s needs. The opposite can also happen. You can refer a child to a CDNT, and the CDNT might decide that the child’s needs are not complex and do not need their team's support. Instead, they might say that their local Primary Care Team can better support your child's needs.
Information on how Primary Care services, CDNTs and CAMHS work.
The time a child will wait for services is different with each CDNT. It depends on the type of support your child needs and the demand for services in your area.
Contact your CDNT to ask for an update on your child's waiting time.
The CDNT will see your child based on the date the CDNT got your referral. If your child has moved across from a waiting list with a Primary Care Team, the CDNT will go by the date that team got your child's referral.
Some children, when they are referred to the CDNT or on the CDNT waiting list, may have urgent needs, such as equipment breakdown. If your child has an urgent need, please contact your CDNT to update them.
Please also let the CDNT know if your child has had any private assessments so they can keep your child’s file is up to date.
When your child’s case is opened, a team member will arrange to meet you and your child. At this meeting, they will explain how the team works and what to expect next – typically this will involve completing an Individual Family Support Plan (IFSP) with you. You will also have a chance to ask any questions.
Before you and your child come into the clinic for the first time, ask yourself these questions:
- Do you know where to go and who to contact when you arrive at the clinic?
- Would your child benefit from extra supports for their first appointment, for example, a social story, photos of the building, or a quiet space?
- Are you concerned about how your child may manage attending an appointment in an unfamiliar environment?
If you need further support on any of these, please contact your CDNT. Photographs of our CDNTs' locations are also available on the CDNT contact pages on this website.
Can’t attend your appointment?
If you are unable to attend your appointment, please let us know so that the time slot can be given to another child and family.
Interpreter
If you need an interpreter, please contact the team to let them know which language you need for your appointment.
If I want to get in touch, who do I contact?
Generally, appointments are offered to you from the team. However if you need to speak to team members, you can contact them using the CDNT’s central email address and phone number. If you need to cancel or reschedule an appointment, please also use one of these contact options (email or phone) to let us know.
The type support your child and family get depends on what goals you want to focus on.
CDNTs have a range of supports. These include:
- Universal strategies (group work): this is suitable for all families and children
- Targeted group work: this is suitable for some children or families
- One-to-one support: this is suitable for a child/ young person if their needs cannot be dealt with through universal strategies or targeted group work
Individual supports (or ‘one-to-one therapy’) are for children and young people who need to work one-to-one with a clinician on their goals. These goals might be for certain clinical needs, such as difficulties with postural management, feeding, eating, drinking, or swallowing.
Not all children with complex needs, arising from a disability, will need individual supports.
All these approaches have equal value. Your child and family might need a mix of approaches at various times. It depends on what is best suited to meet the child’s needs, in line with your family priorities.
CDNT parent groups are information sessions, talks, and workshops designed to support the parents and families of children and young people accessing CDNT services.
CDNT parent groups may cover topics like:
- How to help your child sleep through the night
- Toilet training for children who have extra needs
- Supporting your child to develop communication skills
- How to prepare your child for the move from primary to secondary school.
CDNT parent groups are an important part of your interactions with clinicians on the team. Attending these workshops will allow you to get to know the clinicians and understand how they work. It also helps the clinicians get to know your child better through any questions you raise.
Attending these CDNT parent groups also supports you in achieving the goals you have identified as a priority for your child or young person at that time. It is much more effective if the adults who have the deepest relationships and spend the most time with a child or young person are empowered to provide ongoing support to them.
Attending parent groups is also an opportunity for you to meet other parents with similar concerns and experiences.
Targeted supports are what we call group work for children or parents who have similar needs. These groups are invite-only. This is because the CDNT has identified children or parents who need this support.
The CDNT also runs groups for certain age groups, to make sure the content is suitable for that age.
Bringing children together in groups is more fun for them and they can learn from each other. Group work for parents brings together parents who have shared challenges and gives them a chance to share their ideas and experiences.
Examples of group work include:
- Early Bird Training Programme for parents of children who recently got an autism diagnosis
- Hanen programmes for developing communication
- Triple P Positive Parenting
Respect and recognition: We will treat you and your family members with courtesy and respect at all times. We will acknowledge and value you as the most important person in your child’s life.
Clear CDNT contact points: We will give you a central email address and phone number to contact your CDNT. These CDNT contact points can help with:
- booking and managing appointments
- service enquiries
- service information
- taking service feedback
Support in different settings: We will deliver supports in a variety of settings depending on where your child will benefit most – for example, at home, at school, or in a clinic.
Individual Family Support Plan: We will develop an Individual Family Support Plan (IFSP) for you and your child. We will provide the support and services that we have available to meet the goals of the IFSP.
Support if your child is moving services: We will provide you with information and support if your child is moving on – for example, moving to a new setting such as preschool or school, or transferring to other services.
Respect: We ask that you always treat all team members with courtesy and respect.
Attendance as agreed – or tell us if there is an issue: We ask that you and your child attend all appointments or groups as agreed by you and the team, as set out in your Individual Family Support Plan. For parent-only groups, we ask that you attend without your child. We ask that you let us know if you are going to be late or unable to attend your appointment.
Help with the Individual Family Support Plan: We ask that you share ideas and information and help us to develop the IFSP for your child.
Carry out agreed activities: We ask that you try to carry out the recommendations and activities agreed with the team. If you need more support to do this, please tell the team members who are working with you and your child.
Ask us questions if you want or need to: We ask that you talk with your CDNT if you have any queries or concerns about our service.