Adults with learning disabilities in Oxfordshire have helped redesign a service for more flexible and varied short break options.

The adult learning disability short break programme has been developed with people who draw on the service, as well as their families and carers, through a process called coproduction.

It will offer traditional building-based stays as well as more flexible community-based solutions.

Cllr Tim Bearder, Oxfordshire County Council’s Cabinet Member for Adult Social Care, said: "Caring for loved ones can be extremely rewarding but it can also be tiring work.

"Short breaks is an important service commissioned by the council, offering adults with learning disabilities some additional support in a different environment while giving carers the chance to rest and recharge.

"By working with people who draw on the service, we’ve heard that our traditional building-based option isn’t right for everyone.

"That’s why we’ve introduced a more flexible, hybrid system, giving people the opportunity to choose what’s right for them."

Organisations such as My Life, My Choice and Oxfordshire Family Support Network offered their assistance to restructure the adults’ short breaks service.

This provides individuals with learning disabilities more autonomy over their support options.

Despite reducing the number of properties for building-based stays from four to three, the council aims to expand the outreach of the service and make it accessible to more people.

Significant improvements, including the design and decor, will be made to the three facilities based on feedback from service users.

A new community-based support option, in line with the council’s Oxfordshire Way vision, will run alongside traditional services to enable more individuals to live independently and comfortably within their communities.

This results from listening to the carers and service users striving to deliver services which resonate most with the users.

Gail Hanrahan, the programme manager at Oxfordshire Family Support Network, said: "We are pleased to have been part of coproducing and codesigning the adult short breaks service, which we hope will offer greater choice and flexibility for the families we support and their loved ones."

The council plans to begin renovations to the building-based services soon, with the anticipation of completion by spring 2025.

Despite the apparent decline in numbers for building-based stays, the ongoing services will continue running in the additional buildings during refurbishment.

The council will begin the process of invitations for organisations to bid to provide the new services, with the contract expected to start in April 2025.

Until then, the existing service will continue unchanged.