In line with NICE Guidelines, the programmes we offer are the first line of treatment for your child.

The programmes in this leaflet will help you to support your child. Programmes are held in various locations and online.

Throughout this leaflet some words have been shortened; this is what they mean:

LD – Learning Disability
MDT – Multi-Disciplinary Team
GDD – Global Developmental Delay
GP – General Practitioner (your family doctor)
NAS – National Autistic Society
CNTW – Cumbria, Northumberland, Tyne and Wear NHS Foundation Trust
NICE – National Institute for Health and Care Excellence
PBS – Positive Behaviour Support

This term is used when a child takes longer to reach most of their developmental milestones compared to other children their age (learning to walk, talk, movement skills, learning new things, socialising).

For some children, the delay in their development will be short term and can be overcome with additional support or therapy.

A learning disability is continued delay in a child’s developmental milestones. This includes difficulty in understanding new or complex information, learning new skills, difficulty coping independently and/or reduced social functioning.

These difficulties must be present before adulthood and not explained by other factors. A learning disability needs to be formally assessed and diagnosed.

Autism is a lifelong neurodivergence and disability which affects how people communicate and interact with the world.

Autism and a learning disability can overlap but they are not the same.

Referrals to the team are accepted from any parent, carer or professional working with a child, young person or their family. Referrals are accepted by email, telephone or by post.

Please complete the referral form and return to the service.  If you require any help or assistance to complete the referral form please contact the service directly who will be able to help.

The Children’s Learning Disability Service is a team of experienced Learning Disability/Children’s Nurses, Assistant Practitioners, Clinical Support Assistants, Peer Supporters and other professionals. We offer a service when a child or young person requires specialist support arising from their learning disability and its impact on their health. We often do this by working to advise parents or other health professionals working with the child.

We work with Children aged 2 to 18 years:

  • With evidence of Global Developmental Delay (aged 5 and under) or a presumed/diagnosed learning disability (aged 6 up to 18)

and

  • Who require specialist support beyond mainstream services (Health Visitors, Children’s Centres etc).

In line with NICE Guidelines, the programmes we offer are the first line of treatment for your child.

Individual support for children and their families with Global Developmental Delay or a presumed/diagnosed learning disability (2 to 18 years) who require specialist support, arising from their learning disability and its impact on their health and wellbeing.

What we can support with
Improving quality of life for children and their families through support with:

  • Behaviour
  • Sleep
  • Emotional well-being and mental wellness (for example anxiety)
  • Skill development (including play skills)
  • Puberty and healthy relationships
  • Transitions
  • Access to heath provision/health promotion
  • Building supportive environments
  • Building understanding and mindful support networks

A programme for parents and carers of children aged 2 to 18 years with Global Developmental Delay or a presumed/diagnosed learning disability.

Aims of the programme:

  • To help you to explore and supporting your child’s wellbeing, and reduce stress and distress, and distress-related behaviours, or other behaviours of concern
  • To help explore developing effective strategies to support your children
  • To explore coping skills, confidence and reducing stress

There are two separate courses, one for parents and carers of primary aged children up to age 11, and one for parents and carers of secondary aged teenagers from 12 to 17 years.

You will be offered an introduction session before starting this programme to give an overview of Riding The Rapids and to answer any questions you might have.

You will be invited to a follow up session a few months after the course has finished.

Number of sessions: 10

Duration of each session: 2 hours and 30 minutes

Number of places per family: 2

A programme for parents and carers of children aged 2 to 18 years with Global Developmental Delay or a presumed/diagnosed learning disability.

Aims of the programme:

  • Understand how your child’s emotions can impact their behaviour
  • Develop an awareness of the impact your own emotions have on your child’s behaviour
  • Connect with your child, even in the most challenging times
  • How to best help your child develop new skills

This session will be non-judgemental and supportive. If you would like some more information and/or would like to attend, please contact us.

Number of sessions: 1 plus review (online: 2 sessions plus review)
Duration each session: 3 hours and 15 minutes
Number of places per family: 4

A programme for parents and carers of children aged 2 to 18 years with Global Developmental Delay or a presumed/diagnosed learning disability.

Aims of the programme:

  • To bring carers together to explore common difficulties and normalise these behaviours
  • To work in partnership with families and professionals
  • To acknowledge and develop parental wellbeing and resilience through sharing the group’s knowledge and experience
  • To increase confidence in understanding and responding to children’s behaviour

Number of sessions: 6
Duration of each session: 2.5 hours
Number of places per family: 4

A programme for parents/carers of children with Global Developmental Delay, a presumed/diagnosed learning disability (2 to 18 years).

Parenting can be full of challenges, big and small. We can all experience unhelpful thoughts, feelings and sensations that make it harder for us to parent in the way we want.

Aims of the programme:

  • Introduce the concept of being on autopilot
  • Learn how to be aware of yourself
  • Stop you from becoming entangled with unhelpful thoughts and emotions
  • Clarify what is most important for you in life and encourage you to invest time in these things
  • Identify the things that hold you back
  • Look at developing mindfulness practices

Number of sessions: 5
Duration of each session: 2.5 hours
Number of places per family: 4

You may not be able to stop the waves, but you can learn to surf - Jon Kabat-Zinn

Individual support for families and their children aged 2 to 18 years with Global Developmental Delay or a presumed/diagnosed learning disability, using a framework of Positive Behaviour Support.

Aims of Positive Behaviour Support

  • Improving the quality of a young person’s life and that of their family and people around them
  • Providing the right support for a young person to lead a meaningful life and learn new skills
  • Offering a preventative approach to reduce the likelihood of behaviours that challenge
  • Helping understand why behaviours that challenge occur
  • Understanding the child’s unique view of the world and ensuring things that are important to them are present
  • Establishing a bespoke plan to help the young person flourish and prosper

Peer Supporters are members of our team who have lived experience of caring for a child with additional needs.

Aims of Peer Support:

  • To utilise their own lived experience to offer understanding, compassion and empathy with families
  • To offer parent/carers support, advice and empowerment
  • To support parent/carers to ensure their voices are heard in situations that may be overwhelming
  • To work with families individually, inspiring hope and positivity
  • To help families recognise their own strengths and goals
  • To provide a link between clinical staff and families, helping staff understand the potential day-to-day challenges that may be faced
  • To facilitate optional group work to help support families on their journey within our service

The Children’s Early Intervention Behaviour Support Service are a team of experienced learning disability nurses, assistant practitioners, clinical support assistants and peer supporters.

We are able to offer early intervention support through a group based approach to learning for parents and carers of children aged 2 to 11 years:

  • Who require early intervention support

and

  • Who have evidence of a diagnosis of Autism

In line with NICE Guidelines, the programmes we offer are the first line of treatment for your child.

Parenting a child with neurodiversity involves a complicated set of emotions, tasks and skills. Our programmes and workshops aim to provide support based on sound theory, research and experience of what works best.

The programmes we offer are:

  • NAS EarlyBird Programme
  • NAS EarlyBird Plus Programme
  • Introduction to Behaviour Programme

A programme for parents/carers of children with a diagnosis of Autism aged 2-5 years.

Aims of the programme:

  • Improving communications and interactions with children under five
  • Using structures to support their child in a range of settings and situations
  • Developing basic play and social skills
  • Understanding and supporting their child’s behaviour
  • To create a support network of peers to share experiences of parenting a young child with Autism
  • An EarlyBird parent book will be provided to each family attending the sessions.

Number of sessions: 6 (+1 home visit)
Duration of each session: 2.5 hours
Number of places per family: 2

What parents have told us:

The knowledge we have gained has given us more confidence to analyse problems and hopefully prevent them rather than lurching from one crisis to another.

Whilst there is no magic wand, EarlyBird is the closest thing you could wish for.

A programme for parents/carers of children with a diagnosis of Autism aged 5-10 years.

Aims of the programme:

  • To increase communication and interaction
  • To develop structure to support the autistic child in a range of settings and situations
  • To develop social skills
  • To understand and support the child’s behaviour
  • Problem solving
  • To create a support network of peers to share experiences of parenting a young child with Autism
  • An EarlyBird Plus parent book will be provided to each family attending the sessions.

Number of sessions: 6 (+1 home visit)
Duration of each session: 2.5 hours
Number of places per family: 2 (+1 education professional)

What parents have told us:

EarlyBird Plus is an absolute must to help you begin to learn and understand how your child’s mind works.

A programme for parents/carers of children with Global Developmental Delay or a presumed/diagnosed learning disability (2-18 years) or Autism.

Aims of the workshop:

  • Understand behaviour that challenges and its impact
  • Understand the reasons and purpose for behaviours occurring
  • Explore the situations and reasons as to why behaviour may happen
  • Introduce the importance of recording behaviours
  • Share strategies to reduce likelihood of behaviours occurring
  • Develop and teach new skills
  • Create a support network of peers to share experiences

Number of sessions: 5
Duration of each session: 2.5 hours
Number of places per family: 4 (+1 education professional)

We will book you an interpreter if you need one.

North Cumbria Children’s Learning Disability and Behaviour Support Service
Telephone: 01900 705 081
Email: CumbriaChildrensLD@cntw.nhs.uk

Bases:
Lillyhall Business Centre, Unit 9, Jubilee Road, Workington, Cumbria, CA14 4HA
The Carleton Clinic, Fairfield Centre, Cumwhinton Drive, Carlisle, CA1 3SX

If you want to make a comment, suggestion, compliment or complaint you can:

We are always looking at ways to improve services. Your feedback allows us to monitor the quality of our services and act upon issues that you bring to our attention.  

You can provide feedback in the following ways:

  • the quickest way for you to do this is to complete our short online survey at www.cntw.nhs.uk/yourvoice. Please use the codes that reflect the support you have received: for learning disability 1 to 1 support use CFTLDNAC01; for programme support use CFTLDEIBW1
  • complete a Your Voice survey, available on wards, reception areas or from staff 
  • other options for sharing your feedback and experience www.cntw.nhs.uk/yourfeedback

Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS)
PALS provide confidential advice and support, helping you to sort out any concerns that you may have about any aspect of your or your loved one's care.

We act independently when handling patient and family concerns, liaising with staff, managers and, where appropriate, relevant organisations, to negotiate prompt solutions. If necessary, we can also refer patients and families to specific local or national-based support agencies.

North of Tyne/North Cumbria
Telephone: 0800 032 0202
Email: pals@nhct.nhs.uk
Post: FREEPOST PALS

9.00am to 4.30pm, Monday to Friday
An answerphone is always available for you to leave a message. A member of the PALS team will aim to return your call as soon as possible.

Further information about the content, reference sources or production of this leaflet can be obtained from the Patient Information Centre. If you would like to tell us what you think about this leaflet please get in touch.

This information can be made available in a range of formats on request (Braille, audio, larger print, easy read, BSL or other languages). Please telephone the Patient Information Centre on 0191 246 7288

Published by the Patient Information Centre
2026 Copyright: Cumbria, Northumberland, Tyne and Wear NHS Foundation Trust

Ref: PIC/878/0126 January 2026 V6
Review date: August 2026

Website: www.cntw.nhs.uk