A study examined whether people with learning difficulties were receiving effective support in taking up direct payments. It was found that people with learning difficulties, especially those receiving a direct payment, had a unique role to play in informing and inspiring other people to apply for direct payments. However, this championing role needed to be mirrored by an equally effective commitment to direct payments within the local authority.
Source: Catherine Bewley and Linsay McCulloch, Helping Ourselves: Direct payments and the development of peer support, Values Into Action (publications@viauk.org) for Joseph Rowntree Foundation
Links: Findings D64
Date: 2004-Dec
The Disability Rights Commission began a formal investigation into whether primary health services were addressing the health inequalities experienced by people with learning disabilities and people with mental health problems. Particular areas of interest were family doctor services, essential screening, and health improvement.
Source: Press release 10 December 2004, Disability Rights Commission (08457 622633)
Links: DRC press release
Date: 2004-Dec
An inspectorate report said that people with learning disabilities were seeing services improve: but they got a better deal in some parts of the country than others.
Source: Valuing People: Much Achieved, More to do, Commission for Social Care Inspection (0845 015 0120)
Links: Report (pdf) | CSCI press release | Community Care report
Date: 2004-Nov
A taskforce report expressed concern that plans for improvements in services for people with learning difficulties - including housing and support, day services, and healthcare - were not being realized because there was a lack of information about what was actually spent and, therefore, what future investment needed to be.
Source: Press release 11 November 2004, Mencap (020 7454 0454)
Links: Mencap press release | Community Care report
Date: 2004-Nov
In January 2004 almost 247,600 pupils across all schools in England had statements of special educational needs - the lowest number in 5 years.
Source: Special Educational Needs in England January 2004, Statistical First Release 44/2004, Department for Education and Skills (0870 000 2288)
Links: SFR (pdf)
Date: 2004-Nov
A report said that pervasive discrimination meant that people with learning difficulties remained ostracized from their local communities, despite a range of government reforms. Name-calling, physical assault, and damage to property were a daily reality; 9 out of 10 had no job; and 20,000 people did not have anything to do during the day.
Source: Hidden Lives: Improving life chances of people with a learning disability, Turning Point (020 7702 1458)
Links: Report (pdf) | Turning Point press release | Guardian report
Date: 2004-Nov
A report tracked the progress of a sample of young people with special educational needs as they moved from compulsory schooling to early adulthood. Fewer than half of all young people taking part in the survey could recall attending a transition planning review (a statutory obligation for young people with statements of special educational needs). But most young people had a positive regard for their time at school.
Source: Sara Dewson, Jane Aston, Peter Bates, Helen Ritchie and Alan Dyson, Post-16 Transitions: A longitudinal study of young people with special educational needs - Wave two, Research Report 582, Department for Education and Skills (0845 602 2260)
Links: Report (pdf) | Brief (pdf)
Date: 2004-Oct
Researchers found that the policy of a local education authority towards the education of children with special educational needs (in terms of the proportion of pupils educated in mainstream schools) seemed to have no bearing on overall levels of attainment in schools in that LEA. There was some evidence (chiefly in the views of teachers and pupils) that inclusion could have positive effects on the wider achievements of all pupils, such as social skills and understanding.
Source: Alan Dyson, Peter Farrell, Graeme Hutcheson, Filiz Polat and Frances Gallannaugh, Inclusion and Pupil Achievement, Research Report 578, Department for Education and Skills (0845 602 2260)
Links: Report (Word file) | Brief (pdf)
Date: 2004-Oct
A schools inspectorate report said that most mainstream schools were committed to meeting special educational needs, as a result of the government's revised inclusion framework. But the framework had thus far had little effect on the proportion of pupils with SEN in mainstream schools, or on the range of needs for which mainstream schools catered.
Source: Special Educational Needs and Disability: Towards inclusive schools, HMI 2276, Office for Standards in Education (07002 637833)
Links: Report (pdf) | OFSTED press release | NUT press release | DRC press release | Scope press release | Children Now report
Date: 2004-Oct
A report said that up to 4 out of 10 people were dissatisfied with their experience of call centres. Call centres did not work well for people trying to resolve complex problems, those who did not have easy telephone access, those who had learning disabilities, or who did not speak English.
Source: Jasvir Chatha, Sarah Deacon, Sue Edwards, Susan Marks and Dan Vale, Hanging on the Telephone: CAB evidence on the effectiveness of call centres, Citizens Advice (020 7833 2181)
Links: Report (pdf) | Summary | Citizens Advice press release
Date: 2004-Sep
A report called for a public debate on how best to care for people with both learning disabilities and mental health needs. It said that institutional care was essential for many people with learning disabilities and troubled minds.
Source: Andrew Curry et al., 21st Century Asylums?, Premium Publishing (07974 176708)
Links: Premium press release | Guardian report
Date: 2004-Aug
A briefing brought together the findings from several studies on the importance of families and relationships in the lives of people with a learning disability growing older and experiencing dementia.
Source: Growing Older with a Learning Disability and Dementia, Research Briefing 17, Centre for Research on Families and Relationships/University of Edinburgh (0131 651 1832)
Links: Report (pdf)
Date: 2004-Jul
A study investigated existing models of practice for supporting people with learning difficulties and dementia living in care home settings.
Source: Heather Wilkinson, Diana Kerr, Colm Cunningham and Catherine Rae, Home for Good?: Preparing to support people with a learning disability in a residential setting when they develop dementia, Pavilion Publishing (01273 623222) for Joseph Rowntree Foundation
Links: Report (pdf) | Summary
Date: 2004-Jun
A report highlighted the reasons why people with a learning disability often received poor healthcare, and the changes required to improve the situation. It called for all healthcare staff to be given learning disability training, and an inquiry into why people with a learning disability often died younger than other people.
Source: Treat Me Right!: Better healthcare for people with a learning disability, Mencap (020 7454 0454)
Links: Report (pdf) | Summary (pdf) | Mencap press release | Guardian report
Date: 2004-Jun
An article reviewed government policy on accommodation for people with learning disabilities. Better incentives were needed for local authorities to provide support for people with learning disabilities to safely live in a home of their own rather than in residential care.
Source: Andy Stevens, 'Closer to home: A critique of British government policy towards accommodating learning disabled people in their own homes', Critical Social Policy, Volume 24 Number 2
Links: Abstract
Date: 2004-May
A report presented the findings of a two-year nationwide research programme designed to explore the spiritual lives of people with learning disabilities. It examined the significance of this dimension of their experience for strategies of care and support.
Source: John Swinton with Elaine Powrie, Why Are We Here?: Meeting the spiritual needs of people with learning disabilities, Foundation for People with Learning Disabilities (020 7802 0300)
Links: Summary (pdf) | FPLD press release
Date: 2004-May
The second annual report on learning disability services was published by the government. It said that government departments and other public bodies were making more effort to include people with learning disabilities in the work they did, and that departments were much better at understanding how important it was to give accessible information.
Source: Valuing People: Moving Forward Together, HC 507, Department of Health, TSO (0870 600 5522)
Links: Report (pdf) | DH press release
Date: 2004-Apr
A report described a research project designed to see how support services could help to ensure that the religious needs of adults with learning disabilities were met.
Source: Chris Hatton, Susannah Turner, Robina Shah, Nabela Rahim and Julie Stansfield, Religious Expression, A Fundamental Human Right: Report of an action research project on meeting the religious needs of people with learning disabilities, Foundation for People with Learning Disabilities (020 7802 0300)
Links: Report (pdf)
Date: 2004-Apr
The government began consultation on how the performance of pupils with special educational needs could be fairly reflected in school performance tables.
Source: Consultation on Performance Tables and Pupils with Special Educational Needs, Department for Education and Skills (0845 602 2260)
Links: Consultation document (pdf)
Date: 2004-Apr
The government published a new long-term strategy to transform the education of children with special educational needs. There would be a focus on early intervention; personalised learning for all children; and development of teachers' skills. More children with SEN would be educated in mainstream schools. There would be a continuing role for special schools as centres of excellence educating children with the most severe and complex needs, working closely with mainstream schools to share expertise. There would also be closer partnerships between education, health and social services and the voluntary sector to ensure that children with SEN and disabilities got the services they needed. Campaigners said that plans to retain separate 'special' schools in perpetuity for some pupils worked against the long-term interests of disabled people.
Source: Removing Barriers to Achievement: The government s strategy for SEN, Department for Education and Skills (0845 602 2260) | House of Commons Hansard, Debate 11 February 2004, columns 1429-1443, TSO (0870 600 5522) | Press release February 2004, Centre for Studies on Inclusive Education (0117 344 4007)
Links: Report (pdf) | Summary (pdf) | Hansard | DfES press release | CSIE press release | Mencap press release | NASUWT press release | BBC report | Guardian report
Date: 2004-Feb
The schools inspectorate said that most maintained special schools set statutory school performance targets, but that the support they received from local education authorities to collate and analyse the information varied too widely.
Source: Setting Targets for Pupils with Special Educational Needs, HMI 751, Office for Standards in Education (07002 637833)
Links: Report (pdf) | OFSTED press release
Date: 2004-Feb
A report summarised an investigation into the funding of special educational needs provision, carried out in 2003. It was commissioned by the government following evidence of above-inflation increases in the resources retained centrally for SEN. No evidence was found of any significant expansion of central administrative or support services.
Source: Investigation into the Funding of SEN Provision in Schools and Education Elsewhere, Department for Education and Skills (0845 602 2260)
Links: Report (Word file)
Date: 2004-Feb
A research report explored the impact of local education authority strategies to reduce reliance on statements for children with special educational needs. The level of statements maintained by LEAs did not appear to have an impact on the results achieved by their pupils with SEN (or overall). In the low-statementing authorities, more pupils with SEN without a statement reach the expected levels, at each key stage, than in the high-statementing authorities. The government was urged to provide a clearer national steer on the role of statements in meeting children s needs and the desirability of promoting early intervention and whole school inclusive practice.
Source: Anne Pinney, Reducing Reliance on Statements: An investigation into local authority practice and outcomes, Research Report 508, Department for Education and Skills (0845 602 2260)
Links: Report (pdf) | Brief (pdf)
Date: 2004-Feb
A journal article reported on a study which examined the views of 101 boys and girls aged 10-11 and 13-14 with statements of special educational needs for moderate learning difficulties.
Source: Brahm Norwich and Narcie Kelly, 'Pupils' views on inclusion: moderate learning difficulties and bullying in mainstream and special schools', British Educational Research Journal, Volume 30, Number 1
Links: Abstract
Date: 2004-Feb
A report examined the healthcare needs of people with learning disabilities in Scotland.
Source: People with Learning Disabilities in Scotland: Health needs assessment report, NHS Scotland (0141 300 1026)
Links: Summary (pdf) | NHS Scotland press release
Date: 2004-Feb
A report described the 'largely negative' experiences of women with severe learning disabilities who were transferred from a long-stay hospital into community-based accommodation.
Source: Katherine Owen, Going Home: Study of women with severe learning difficulties moving out of a locked ward, Judith Trust (020 7266 1073)
Links: Summary | Guardian article
Date: 2004-Feb
A pamphlet set out the case against segregation of children with special educational needs in special schools.
Source: Sharon Rustemier, The Case Against Segregation Into Special Schools: A look at the evidence, Centre for Studies on Inclusive Education (0117 344 4007)
Links: Summary (pdf) | CSIE press release
Date: 2004-Feb
A report said that progress had been made since the publication of a White Paper on learning disabilities in 2001: but most people with learning disabilities still did not have basic rights, and faced discrimination. This was especially so for people from minority ethnic communities, and people who had high support needs.
Source: Pen Mendon a, Rights, Independence, Choice and Inclusion, Learning Disability Task Force/Department of Health (0808 808 1111)
Links: Report (pdf) | Mencap press release
Date: 2004-Feb
A report explored how day centres were addressing employment for people with learning disabilities, and their relationships with organisations providing employment services. It said that a 'key factor' limiting the hours worked by this client group was the inability to work more without losing entitlement to income support.
Source: Stephen Beyer et al., Working Lives: The role of day centres in supporting people with learning disabilities into employment, Research Report 203, Department for Work and Pensions (0113 399 4040)
Links: Report (pdf links) | Summary (pdf) | DWP press release | Community Care report
Date: 2004-Feb
A report provided an overview of teaching strategies and approaches for pupils with special educational needs, the theoretical underpinnings of these strategies, and the role of specialist knowledge in teaching these pupils.
Source: Pauline Davis and Lani Florian, Teaching Strategies and Approaches for Pupils with Special Educational Needs: A Scoping Study, Research Report 516, Department for Education and Skills (0845 602 2260)
Links: Report (pdf) | Brief (pdf)
Date: 2004-Feb
A study explored the potential for undertaking a cost-benefit analysis of earlier identification and more effective intervention in the field of special educational needs. It focused on children with autism spectrum disorders and children at risk of low educational attainment implying SEN.
Source: Ivy Papps and Alan Dyson, The Costs and Benefits of Earlier Identification and Effective Intervention: Final report, Research Report 505, Department for Education and Skills (0845 602 2260)
Links: Report (pdf) | Brief (pdf)
Date: 2004-Jan