MS care and support on holiday
Short breaks aren't impossible when you have care and support needs. But they can take a bit longer to plan, especially if you want to spend some time away from home.
Taking a break at home
You can arrange care and support for breaks at home through care agencies. Paid carers come into your home to take over caring responsibilities for a while, giving the main carer a break. Find them online:
- Homecare.co.uk is a carers' directory that covers the whole UK
- Crossroads Care has a network of local schemes across England and Wales.
- In Scotland you can also use Shared Care Scotland or Crossroads Caring Scotland
- In Northern Ireland there's also Crossroads Caring NI
Taking a break away from home, in the UK or abroad
There are many different ways to take a quality break away from home with caring support. Here's some ideas:
Take a paid carer or personal assistant with you
Some care and nursing agencies provide holiday respite care services, and can arrange for care to be provided where you're staying. Alternatively, taking a personal assistant could be an option.
Stay at an accessible hotel or holiday centre that offers respite care packages
- Bond Holidays have accessible hotels and self-catering accommodation in Blackpool and St Annes. Care can be arranged through their partner service, Holidays with Care. Phone 01253 341 218
- Shared Care Scotland’s online database has information about many short break, holiday and respite care providers, mainly in Scotland, but you can also search for ‘Rest of UK’. Call their information line on 01383 622 462
- Calvert Kielder offers outdoor activities for people with disabilities, with respite for the carer. Phone 01434 250232
Use a specialist travel agency
Some specialist travel agencies can help arrange accessible holidays with care. Some just cover the UK, others cover overseas as well. Try
Stay at a care or nursing home
The benefit of staying in a care or nursing home is that they're always accessible and have specialist equipment and staff on hand. To find care and nursing homes in the UK, search on carehome.co.uk.
Some people with MS use care homes as a convenient base to explore an area or visit family and friends. Some have even used this option abroad. Try contacting the national MS organisation in the country you want to visit, using the MS International Federation website and see if they can suggest some local options.
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