A scheme to give disabled children support to attend out-of-school clubs could be scaled back as demand grows too high.

Medway Council’s cabinet is to consider changing its eligibility criteria for the short breaks grant to save £200,000.

The scheme is intended to help children and young people with disabilities develop new relationships, skills, and confidence through activities such as playing sport, attending after-school clubs, or spending a few days away from home.

They also give the child’s carers time away from their responsibilities to rest, undertake education, training, or regular leisure activities, spend quality time with other children in the family and complete essential household tasks.

Short breaks grants are between £500 to £1000 per year.

They were introduced in 2016 and, at the time, Medway Council had 700 people who received payments.

This number has increased by 68%, reaching 1177 children by October last year.

It meant the 2022/23 spend on short breaks grant was £625,000 - £134,000 above the allocated budget for the scheme, £491,000.

Now the authority’s cabinet is to consider plans to tighten up eligibility criteria, remove the lowest level of grants, reduce the amount families receive by £250, and ask families to reapply each year.

If approved, children will need to have a diagnosed disability or receive a Disability Living Allowance (DLA) to be eligible.

Additionally, the lowest level of the grant would be reallocated, as the council believes other services which have been created since 2016 such as Medway GO and Child Friendly Medway, can meet those children’s needs.

At present, families where the disability of their child has “little or no impact on family” receive £500, those that have a “moderate impact” receive £750, and those that have a major impact receive £1000.

But plans would see the lowest level removed and the remaining two reduced by £250.

The authority also thinks asking families to reapply each year, rather than automatically being re-enrolled and only being taken off if their case is reviewed, will provide more accurate information about who is most in need.

These changes are estimated to save the council around £200,000 per year.

The report adds the changes would help the authority to better manage the limited allocation they have for the scheme and target money to families which need it most.

The short breaks provision has already been predicted to overspend this year’s budget by £255,000.

Medway Council cabinet members will consider and discuss the plans at next week’s meeting on October 29.