PARENTS of disabled children living in the North-East are being offered help to look after their youngsters.

The project, run by Barnardo's, has been made available to parents across the region after a successful trial in County Durham.

It offers short break, overnight, day care and "sitting" services, and recruits befrienders for disabled children and young people to take them on trips and outings.

Barnardo's disability service manager, Judith Latheron, said parents often did not know what help was on offer.

She said: "There are times in life when everyone needs support and, if you're the parents of a disabled child, you'll know that more than most.

"We have a lot of expertise in the area of disability and our carers and befrienders are properly vetted. We also provide care packages based on a child's individual needs."

Parents can also get help from the recently-introduced direct payment scheme, run by local authorities, which means they can apply for cash for extra services for their children.

The scheme allows parents to employ helpers, and Barnardo's can take on the task of sorting out recruitment, salaries and national insurance contributions.

Mrs Latheron said: "We can take all the worries away from parents who want extra help for their disabled child, but who do not want to go through the long and complicated process of recruiting someone suitable themselves and becoming, in effect, an employer."

Barnardo's Disability Service can be contacted on 0191-378 4800.