United Cerebral Palsy Association of Orange County, Inc.

Our goal is to advance the ability of children with disabilities to build the skills needed to live healthy, self-actualized, and fulfilling lives.

Since our inception, UP has closed gaps preventing children from accessing life-changing services. We are one of the few therapy facilities in Orange County that still treats low-income, under-insured children. Our community-based services, encompassing childcare, recreation, and family services, have been a pillar of support for children and families in Orange County for the past 69 years.

UP helps children with disabilities make physical and cognitive gains; access affirming recreational programs; receive high-quality childcare; and achieve the functional skills needed to become independent participants in their community — in places like school, at home, or out in public. We are committed to improving the quality of life for children and helping them achieve their full potential. Our programs also provide critical support to families who often experience significant hardships due to their child’s disability.

For the past 69 years, UP has worked to provide life-changing care to people with disabilities in Orange County. As one of the community’s longstanding service providers, we have seen the demand for services that impact children with disabilities grow year after year, and we have made changes in order to keep up with Orange County’s evolving needs.

While UP was founded to serve people with cerebral palsy, we have adjusted to meet Orange County’s specific needs by focusing on treating children, their families, and a wider range of disabilities. Today, UP serves children and adults ages 0-22 with cerebral palsy, autism spectrum disorder, Down syndrome, speech and language disorders, brain trauma, epilepsy and seizures, and other developmental delays.

In 2007, UP recognized that in order to best serve our population, we had to address a growing, regionwide need for pediatric therapy services for children with disabilities. Thus, the “Life Without Limits” Pediatric Therapy Center was born. Incorporating therapy into our service model makes UP the only service provider in the county able to coordinate pediatric therapy, childcare, and family support programming simultaneously.

This comprehensive service model wraps the entire family in high-quality care. For example, a family can schedule a trained UP respite worker to visit their home and watch their child while they attend a UP educational workshop or go to work. Later, they can bring their child to our Pediatric Therapy Center to receive pediatric therapy before dropping them off at an after-school program under the supervision of an UP childcare worker. Incredibly, all of this can take place within a single day.

While each of UP’s core programs can stand alone, we encourage families to utilize multiple modes of care. This allows UP to streamline the family’s service experience, ensuring that they receive targeted care from a service provider that knows them and their child’s diagnosis the best.

In the fiscal year 2021, UP served 4,314 children with disabilities and their families in Orange County. Our organization provided 154,780 hours of respite & childcare throughout our community, along with 18,891 therapy & early intervention sessions. We remain committed to our mission of creating a limitless future for children and families with disabilities throughout Orange County.