Children and young people
When you care for a child with additional needs
If you care for a child or young person with additional needs, you carry a mountain of detail: what helps, what to avoid, who to call, and what is coming next. TIWANI is built to hold some of that load with you.
It is private and non-clinical. It helps you prepare and share, it suggests rather than instructs, and it points you to trusted UK organisations when you need more than a plan.
How TIWANI helps
Turn what you know into a ready plan
When something is coming up, a medical appointment, a school trip, a haircut, TIWANI turns what you already know about your child into a short preparation plan: what to expect, a suggested approach, and a short, ranked list of strategies to try. You accept, edit, or ignore any of it.
Hand school or a carer one clear page
Share a one-page Continuity Card with a teacher, a relative, or a holiday club, so you do not have to explain your child from scratch every time. It carries what helps and what to avoid. No personal details travel in the link.
See whether life is holding
Quick check-ins after the things you prepare for build a simple, private signal of whether family life is steady or quietly narrowing, across the areas that matter. It is a prompt to pause, never a diagnosis.
A gentle nudge toward real support
If one area has been under pressure for a while, TIWANI gives you a calm, dismissible heads-up and points to trusted organisations like the ones below. It signposts; it never diagnoses.
Trusted information and support
TIWANI is not the source of this guidance, these organisations are. Each link opens an official or established UK service in a new tab.
Your rights and the SEND system
- GOV.UK: special educational needs and disabilities (SEND)How the SEND system works in England, from extra help at school to education, health and care (EHC) plans.(opens in a new tab)
- IPSEA (Independent Provider of Special Education Advice)Free, legally based advice on SEND support, EHC plans, and appeals.(opens in a new tab)
- GOV.UK: find your local councilReach your council's Local Offer: the SEND services, advice, and support available in your area.(opens in a new tab)
Money and practical help
- GOV.UK: financial help if you have a disabled childBenefits, grants, and other financial support for families raising a disabled child.(opens in a new tab)
- GOV.UK: Disability Living Allowance (DLA) for childrenHelp with the extra costs of looking after a child under 16 who has a disability or health condition.(opens in a new tab)
- Family FundGrants for lower-income families raising a disabled or seriously ill child or young person.(opens in a new tab)
Information and community
- Contact (for families with disabled children)A free helpline, guides, and a community for families, whatever your child's condition or diagnosis.(opens in a new tab)
- National Autistic SocietyInformation and support for autistic people and their families.(opens in a new tab)
- MencapAdvice and support for people with a learning disability and those who care for them.(opens in a new tab)
Explore who else TIWANI is for
Help us build TIWANI
TIWANI is built by a small team for families who carry more than their share. If you would like to help us keep building it, you can register your interest in supporting our work. Donations are not open yet, and we will be clear about how any support is used.