ONCE a fortnight, York schoolgirl Rosa Barnes goes for tea with her friend, Anne Clarke. For most seven-year-old girls, having a play date after school is a regular treat. But things are different for Rosa.

Like many girls her age, she wears her hair in pigtails and has a wobbly front tooth.

But Rosa was born with Rett Syndrome, which has left her confined to a wheelchair, unable to walk or talk.

She also has diabetes and epilepsy, and her care is a full-time job for her family – mum Helen, dad Jerry, and brothers, Pat, 15 and George, 12.

But when Rosa goes for tea with Anne after school, the family get a bit of a break – and Rosa gets to have the experience that thousands of other little girls enjoy every week.

“Rosa is a very happy, sociable girl, which makes looking after her a pleasure,” says mum Helen.

Anne can vouch for that. Despite Rosa’s challenging physical needs, Anne has been looking after Rosa for short spells for the past 17 months.

She is a volunteer with Sharing Care, an organisation that provides support to families who have children with special needs. Volunteers offer respite to parents by looking after children so they can have a break, or spend quality time with other family members.

Anne has been a volunteer for 14 years and worked with children with a range of disabilities. She is a qualified nurse and childminder, but stresses professional caring qualifications were not necessary for the job.

“You don’t have to be a parent, but you do need to have a love of children and a lot of patience,” said Anne. Equally, not all children demand the level of care of Rosa. “There are plenty of children out there who don’t have such complex health needs but do need respite,” said Anne.

“They might have autism or be hyperactive and just need somebody to keep an eye on them all the time.” While Sharing Care provides short breaks for parents, Anne stresses it also provides important opportunities for children. “If they are different, even if they go to mainstream school, they don’t get invited to tea or to the same parties,” said Anne.

“They can be left out of social groups. One of the main things Sharing Care gives to these children is the chance to socialise with another family, in another home.”

Anne, who lives in York with husband Steve and sons Oliver, 20, and Tim, 18, said her experience with Sharing Care has been good for her family, too. Her children – including her daughter Rebecca, 23, who now lives in London – were brought up having regular contact with children with disabilities. Anne said: “If they see children having tantrums in the street they don’t judge them because they have a broader outlook on life and know not to judge a screaming child.”

Of her sons, she said: “They are great with Rosa. When Oliver comes in from work he will sit with her, give her a little cuddle and chat to her even though she can’t chat back.” Anne thrives on the contact too. “I really enjoy knowing I am helping other people who have disabled children,” she said. “It’s a nice feeling knowing they have got somebody there for them if there was a family crisis. In a normal family you can get a neighbour to sit with your child, but with a disabled child, it is a lot more difficult.”

Helen is also happy with the Sharing Care arrangements. Families and carers are carefully matched, and plenty of training is provided for volunteers.

Helen said: “For us, it’s great to know that Rosa is going into a family setting that is pretty much a match to our own. She’s used to boys coming in and sitting for a chat.

“I’m confident that when she goes to Anne and her family, she is having a great time and she is happy.”

Besides visits for tea, Anne will take Rosa for longer spells of up to six hours in the holidays, so that Helen and Jerry can have a day out with their sons.

“We can take off,” said Helen. “We’ve been for walks in the summer.”

Bev Knights, of Sharing Care, said there was a shortage of volunteers in York and that the organisation was looking for more people to offer breaks to families.

She said the aim of Sharing Care was two-fold: to give families time out and to give opportunities to disabled children.

There are currently 60 families in York using Sharing Care, and the group has 50 carers available.

“We need more,” said Bev. “We always need to top up our bank of carers and are always trying to recruit and train people and increase the amount of short breaks we can offer.”

Bev said people from all walks of life could be carers. “You don’t need to be a specialist.

“We need people who enjoy spending time with children, can treat them as an individual and help them to enjoy themselves and get out there.

“We need people who are prepared to put some commitment into it and work with us and the families as a team.”

Bev pointed out there were lots of children with different needs who needed breaks and plenty of training was available to new volunteers.

She said: “We are looking for a series of people; single people and families who can offer a few hours to go out with a child or take them on a visit to their own home.

“Some children just visit for tea, some stay overnight.

“Most visits are after school at the weekend or during the holidays – it depends on what the carer is prepared to offer and what the child needs.”

Anne said: “We get a lot from Rosa. There’s a lot you can gain from a relationship as a sharing carer. It’s a real privilege to be part of somebody else’s family and to be trusted with their precious child.”

Helen said: “We really appreciate the time we have when Anne and Steve have Rosa. It’s a very worthwhile thing.”

Meanwhile, Anne is already planning ahead for future visits with Rosa.

She said: “I’ve just bought a pass for the Murton farming museum for days out in the summer, and I’m looking forward to taking Rosa to see the animals.”

• Find out more about Sharing Care by phoning 01904 555699.