New £86,000 funding award to support families with disabled children in North Wales

3 mins read

Wednesday 14 May 2025

Tags: covid-19 emergency funding, contact cymru, Benefits and financial support

We are delighted to announce that Contact has successfully secured £86,000 in funding from the Welsh government to provide practical and emotional support to parents caring for disabled children in North Wales.

Thanks to the funding, Contact Cymru will work in partnership with the All Wales Forum to help parents in Conwy and Gwynedd claim the benefits they are entitled to such as Disability Living Allowance (DLA), confidently.

Contact will do this by offering workshops and one-to-one support to help guide parents through the complex benefits system and application forms, carry out benefits checks and identify potential grants families can apply for. As well as this, new resources will be developed to help families maximise their incomes.

The funding to improve families financial health comes at a crucial time. Contact’s Counting the Costs research shows that 86% of families with disabled children in Wales find claiming benefits difficult.  In addition, 39% of parent carers in Wales told Contact they had been unable to keep their homes warm enough for their disabled child’s needs, and 88% reported that the extra costs of caring for their disabled child caused worry, stress, or financial strain. 

Kate Wyke Contact Cymru’s manager says: “Parent carers of disabled children face disproportionately high living costs such as higher utility and transport costs and specialist equipment needs – often alongside a reduced capacity to work because of their caring responsibilities. Despite this, many struggle to access the benefits they are entitled to.  Parents tell us that getting welfare support is difficult and frustrating as they face multiple barriers including a complicated benefits system and inaccessible information. Many tell us that they simply do not trust the system which can often feel adversarial.

“For example parents describe applying for DLA – the main benefit for disabled children –  as traumatic, requiring them to relive difficult moments, highlight their child’s challenges and prove their need for support. One parent from North Wales recently shared that they had spent 4.5 months trying to get help with a DLA renewal and during that time, they risked losing access to their financial support. It wasn’t until they turned to Contact that they got the help they needed. This experience is sadly not uncommon. This funding will mean that parents in North Wales will be able to get the information and support they need from our trusted and expert parent advisers who truly understand the daily challenges families face, offering them much needed empathy as well as practical advice.”

Too many parent carers in Wales are living in poverty, despite being eligible for support. This has a significant impact on their child’s life chances and ability to reach their potential. The funding for Contact announced today is one of 25 projects across Wales which form part of the Welsh Government’s commitment to tackling child poverty and its impact in Wales. Find out more about this funding on the Welsh Government’s website.