A discussion paper outlined the need for, and the possibility of, significant progress in personalizing support in further education for young disabled people with profound and multiple learning disabilities.
Source: Pippa Murray and Jane Shepherd, Citizenship in Further Education: Next steps in personalised transition, Centre for Welfare Reform
Links: Discussion paper
Date: 2011-Dec
A report presented the findings of a study into the nature and forms of school leadership that promoted the achievement of students with special educational needs and disabilities.
Source: Christopher Chapman, Mel Ainscow, Susie Miles, and Mel West, Leadership that Promotes the Achievement of Students with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities, National College for School Leadership
Links: Report | Literature review | Case studies
Date: 2011-Dec
The Northern Ireland Executive published five reviews relating to mental health and learning disabilities, covering:
• Children and young people – including early interventions, the needs of looked-after children, and the development of resilience.
• Patient outcomes – including the measurement of recovery, and the capture of patient feedback.
• Learning disability – including the management of challenging behaviours.
• Psychological therapies – including how to embed these in services for children and adults across the lifespan.
• Primary care – including aspects important to the prevention, recognition, and management of mental health in the community.
Source: Geraldine Macdonald, Nuala Livingstone, Gavin Davidson, Seaneen Sloan, Montserrat Fargas, and Dominic McSherry, Improving the Mental Health of Northern Ireland's Children and Young People: Priorities for research, Northern Ireland Executive | Michael Donnelly, David Scott, Sinead McGilloway, Tony O?Neill, Julie Williams, and Mike Slade, Patient Outcomes: What are the best methods for measuring recovery from mental illness and capturing feedback from patients in order to inform service improvement?, Northern Ireland Executive | Eamonn Slevin, Laurence Taggart, Roy McConkey, Wendy Cousins, Maria Truesdale-Kennedy, and Sandra Dowling, Supporting People with Intellectual Disabilities Who Challenge or Who Are Ageing: A rapid review of evidence, Northern Ireland Executive | Mandy Irvine, Chris McCusker, Jennifer Coulter, Helen Corbett, Nadene O?Loan, and Martin Dempster, Advancing Psychological Therapies Research in Northern Ireland, Northern Ireland Executive | Brendan Bunting, Liz Burtney, Finola Ferry, Deirdre Fullerton, Siobhan O?Neill, Domhnall MacAuley, Brendan McCormack, Hugh McKenna, Ciaran Mulholland, and Assumpta Ryan, Rapid Review of Mental Health in Primary Care: What aspects of primary care are effective in the prevention, recognition and management of mental health issues across the lifespan; for whom do they work, in what circumstances and why?, Northern Ireland Executive
Links: Report (1) | Report (2) | Report (3) | Report (4) | Report (5) | NIE press release
Date: 2011-Dec
An article examined the impact of living arrangements and deinstitutionalization in the health status of people with intellectual disability in Europe. Extensive national health surveys and epidemiological studies were urgently needed in order to reduce increased morbidity rates among the population concerned.
Source: Rafael Mart nez-Leal et al., 'The impact of living arrangements and deinstitutionalisation in the health status of persons with intellectual disability in Europe', Journal of Intellectual Disability Research, Volume 55 Issue 9
Links: Abstract
Date: 2011-Nov
An audit report said that course outcomes for young people aged 16-25 receiving special educational support were improving. But a lack of understanding of the relationship between needs, costs, and outcomes could lead to students not getting the right support, and risked compromising value for money.
Source: Oversight of Special Education for Young People Aged 16-25, HC 1585 (Session 2010-2012), National Audit Office, TSO
Links: Report | NAO press release
Date: 2011-Nov
A paper evaluated programmes for children with moderate levels of special educational needs in England. The decentralized design of the policy generated significant variations in access to remedial resources across children with similar prior levels of difficulty: but this differential was not reflected in subsequent educational attainment – suggesting that the programme was ineffective for 'treated' children.
Source: Francois Keslair, Eric Maurin, and Sandra McNally, Every Child Matters? An Evaluation of 'Special Educational Needs' Programmes in England, Discussion Paper 6069, Institute for the Study of Labor (Bonn)
Links: Paper
Date: 2011-Nov
An article examined the use of out-of-area placements to meet the needs of people in England with intellectual disabilities and challenging behaviour. Overall, the majority of out-of-area providers appeared to supply a good standard of care: but there were many factors that continued to hinder local treatment. There was an imperative to identify poorly performing providers, and to explore ways in which service users could be supported effectively.
Source: Diana Andrea Barron, Angela Hassiotis, and Dimitrios Paschos, 'Out-of-area provision for adults with intellectual disabilities and challenging behaviour in England: policy perspectives and clinical reality', Journal of Intellectual Disability Research, Volume 55 Issue 9
Links: Abstract
Date: 2011-Nov
A literature review examined support for people with intellectual disabilities and their family carers, in cases where the person concerned had behaviours that challenged and/or mental health problems, or where they were advancing in age.
Source: Eamonn Slevin, Laurence Taggart, Roy McConkey, Wendy Cousins, Maria Truesdale-Kennedy, and Sandra Dowling, Supporting People with Intellectual Disabilities Who Challenge or Who Are Ageing: A rapid review of evidence, Centre for Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (University of Ulster)
Links: Report
Date: 2011-Nov
An article examined whether the Scottish children's hearings tribunal system could promote greater responsiveness to the needs of parents with learning disabilities, and support fuller direct participation in decisions about the welfare of their child.
Source: Janice McGhee and Susan Hunter, 'The Scottish children's hearings tribunals system: a better forum for parents with learning disabilities?', Journal of Social Welfare & Family Law, Volume 33 Issue 3
Links: Abstract
Date: 2011-Nov
The final evaluation report was published on a pilot project that sought to provide better opportunities for learners with special educational needs and disabilities. Pupils in the pilot recorded greater progress in English and maths; and they also showed improvements in positive relationships, with reductions in bullying and behaviour problems.
Source: Neil Humphrey and Garry Squires, Achievement for All National Evaluation: Final Report, Research Report RR176, Department for Education
Links: Report | Brief | Manchester University press release
Date: 2011-Nov
A report said that community-based support for people with learning disabilities was more effective, safer, and cheaper than institutional care. It called for the government to act to put an end to institutional services.
Source: There Is An Alternative, Association for Supported Living
Links: Report | United Response press release
Date: 2011-Oct
An article examined references to 'friendship' in policy documents for adults with intellectual disabilities living in England. Recent policy documents had given greater prominence to friendship: but a failure to address the tensions and complexities entailed was a recipe for failure in the implementation of policy recommendations.
Source: Rachel Parry Hughes, Marcus Redley, and Howard Ring, 'Friendship and adults with profound intellectual and multiple disabilities and English disability policy', Journal of Policy and Practice in Intellectual Disabilities, Volume 8 Issue 3
Links: Abstract
Date: 2011-Sep
A briefing paper examined the special educational needs system in England, and highlighted the main proposals in the coalition government's Green Paper on special educational needs and disability.
Source: Christine Gillie, The Green Paper on Special Educational Needs and Disability, Standard Note SN/SP/5917, House of Commons Library
Links: Briefing paper
Date: 2011-Aug
An annual report summarized what was known about the nature, extent, and determinants of health inequalities experienced by people with learning disabilities. It included a section focusing on health inequalities experienced by children and young people with learning disabilities.
Source: Eric Emerson, Susannah Baines, Lindsay Allerton, and Vicki Welch, Health Inequalities & People with Learning Disabilities in the UK: 2011, Improving Health and Lives Learning Disabilities Observatory
Links: Report
Date: 2011-Aug
A report highlighted the challenges in supporting and encouraging change in private sector learning disability hospitals – including reducing the number of hospital beds, increasing the number of people with learning disabilities leaving the hospitals for community services, and developing alternative service models.
Source: Rob Greig and Anita Cameron, Incentives for Private Sector Change: Report of the 'Local Services for Local People: Learning Disability Private Sector Hospitals Project', National Development Team for Inclusion
Links: Report | NDTI press release
Date: 2011-Aug
A study found that people with learning disabilities had largely positive views and experiences of the police in Northern Ireland: but it also found that many instances of bullying and harassment of people with learning disabilities were likely to go unreported because the victims did not realize that they had been a victim of crime, or were unwilling to report it. The report made 24 recommendations designed to help ensure that the police responded appropriately to the needs of people with learning disabilities, and also to help combat disability hate crime.
Source: Social Market Research, Views and Experiences of People with Learning Disabilities in Relation to Policing Arrangements in Northern Ireland, Northern Ireland Policing Board/Police Ombudsman for Northern Ireland
Links: Report | NIPB press release
Date: 2011-Aug
The inspectorate for education and children's services said that too few young people aged 16-25 with learning difficulties and disabilities progressed from school to complete programmes that would help them live independently, undertake further study, or gain employment.
Source: Progression Post-16 for Learners with Learning Difficulties and/or Disabilities, HMI 100232, Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills
Links: Report | OFSTED press release | NIACE press release | Public Finance report
Date: 2011-Aug
A new book examined the development of policy on special educational needs, and the fitness of existing school-level systems of provision.
Source: Alison Ekins, The Changing Face of Special Educational Needs: Impact and implications for SENCOs and their schools, Routledge
Links: Summary
Date: 2011-Aug
A report examined how police services across England tackled hate crime against people with a learning disability. There was evidence to indicate that, at the national level, disability hate crime in general was becoming more of a priority for the police: but there was still room for improvement, particularly at local level.
Source: Sanah Sheikh, Robert Pralat, Chris Reed, and Chih Hoong Sin, Don t Stand By, Mencap
Links: Report | ACPO press release | Scope press release | BBC report | Community Care report | Guardian report
Date: 2011-Jun
An article examined which child, family, home, and pre-school factors could be viewed as risk or protective factors for later special educational needs (SEN) status at age 10. The experience of high-quality pre-school education was shown to reduce the likelihood of a child being identified as experiencing SEN in the long run. Teachers' assessments of SEN were found to be strongly related to children's reading and mathematics attainment: but other factors also predicted SEN, including a child's age within a year group.
Source: Yvonne Anders et al., 'The influence of child, family, home factors and pre-school education on the identification of special educational needs at age 10', British Educational Research Journal, Volume 37 Number 3
Links: Abstract
Date: 2011-May
Two linked reports said that financial pressures on local authority budgets and an alarming shortage of suitable social housing stock were increasingly jeopardizing the provision of support for adults with learning disabilities.
Source: David Roe, Illustrative Cost Models in Learning Disabilities Social Care Provision, Laing & Buisson | David Roe, Cost & Cost-Effectiveness Issues in Learning Disabilities Social Care Provision, Laing & Buisson
Links: Report (1) | Report (2) | L&B press release | Community Care report | Guardian report
Date: 2011-May
A report examined initiatives designed to improve teacher workforce skills in relation to special educational needs and disabilities.
Source: Geoff Lindsay et al., Evaluation of Impact of DfE Investment in Initiatives Designed to Improve Teacher Workforce Skills in Relation to SEN and Disabilities, Research Report RR115, Department for Education
Date: 2011-May
An article examined progress since 1997 in the provision of supported employment for people with learning disabilities. There was a need for further action to deliver the government's vision of employment inclusion, and to secure the rights of people with learning disabilities to a place in the workplace.
Source: Kathy Melling, Stephen Beyer, and Mark Kilsby, 'Supported employment for people with learning disabilities in the UK: the last 15 years', Tizard Learning Disability Review, Volume 16 Number 2
Links: Abstract
Date: 2011-Apr
The inspectorate for healthcare and social care published its first monitoring report on the implementation of the deprivation of liberty safeguards, designed to protect the rights of people in care homes and hospitals in England who lacked the mental capacity to consent to their care or treatment.
Source: The Operation of the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards in England, 2009/10, Care Quality Commission
Links: Report
Date: 2011-Mar
A report said that new ways of teaching needed to be developed to help schools in England cope with a 'massive influx' of children with complex special needs.
Source: The Complex Learning Difficulties and Disabilities Research Project: Developing meaningful pathways to personalised learning, Specialist Schools and Academies Trust
Links: Summary | SSAT press release | BBC report
Date: 2011-Mar
A new book said that the segregation and over-protection of people with learning difficulties could have the perverse effect of increasing their 'vulnerability' to sexual abuse. Efforts should instead be made to enable them to become better equipped to manage risk themselves.
Source: Andrea Hollomotz, Learning Difficulties and Sexual Vulnerability: A social approach, Jessica Kingsley Publishers
Links: Summary
Date: 2011-Mar
The government published a Green Paper on education and health support for children with special educational needs (SEN). It said that it proposed to:
• Include parents in the assessment process and introduce a legal right, by 2014, to give them control of funding for the support their child needed.
• Replace SEN statements with a single assessment process and a combined education, health, and care plan – so that health and social services were included in the package of support, along with education.
• Ensure assessment and plans ran from birth to 25 years old.
• Replace the existing 'School Action' and 'School Action Plus' system with a simpler new school-based category to help teachers focus on raising attainment.
• Overhaul teacher training and professional development in order to improve help for pupils with special educational needs and to raise their attainment.
• Inject greater independence from local authorities in assessments by looking at how voluntary groups might co-ordinate the package of support.
• Give parents a greater choice of school, and give parents and community groups the power to set up special free schools.
Source: Support and Aspiration: A new approach to special educational needs and disability, Cm 8027, Department for Education, TSO
Links: Green Paper | Hansard | DE press release | Liberal Democrats press release | ADCS press release | ASCL press release | Barnardos press release | CDC press release | Contact a Family press release | CSIE press release | EDCM press release | FPLD press release | In Control press release | IOE press release | Labour Party press release | LGA press release | Mencap press release | Nasen press release | NASUWT press release | NDCS press release | NUT press release | OCC press release | Scope press release | YoungMinds press release | BBC report | Community Care report | Guardian report | Public Finance report
Date: 2011-Mar
The government published its response to an official report on services for adults with profound intellectual and multiple disabilities (published in March 2010). It said that it supported the conclusions of the report and its central message that the major obstacles to progress were prejudice, discrimination, and low expectations.
Source: Government Response to 'Raising Our Sights: Services for Adults with Profound Intellectual and Multiple Disabilities' – A report by Professor Jim Mansell, Department of Health
Notes: Mansell report
Date: 2011-Feb
An article examined a case study showing how focused intervention could deliver lasting improvement in quality of life for people with severe intellectual disability who exhibited self-injury and other challenging behaviour.
Source: Sandy Toogood, Steven Boyd, Andy Bell, and Helen Salisbury, 'Self-injury and other challenging behaviour at intervention and ten years on: a case study', Tizard Learning Disability Review, Volume 16 Number 1
Links: Abstract
Date: 2011-Feb
An article examined the support that people with learning disabilities who self-injured said that they had found, or would find, helpful in relation to their self-injury.
Source: Pauline Heslop, 'Supporting people with learning disabilities who self-injure', Tizard Learning Disability Review, Volume 16 Number 1
Links: Abstract
Date: 2011-Feb
An article examined the views of care staff on the vulnerability and abuse of adults with learning disabilities. Most informants felt that all people with learning disabilities were vulnerable, and that this definition allowed staff the authority to take protective measures in order to ensure their safety, based on risk management approaches. An alternative person-centred approach to safety planning was proposed.
Source: Fiona Parley, 'Could planning for safety be a realistic alternative to risk management for those deemed vulnerable?', Journal of Adult Protection, Volume 13 Number 1
Date: 2011-Feb
A report examined the role of supported employment agencies in promoting the health of people with learning disabilities in 'real' jobs.
Source: Elisa Vigna, Stephen Beyer, and Michael Kerr, The Role of Supported Employment Agencies in Promoting the Health of People with Learning Disabilities, Welsh Centre for Learning Disabilities (Cardiff University)
Links: Report
Date: 2011-Feb
An article examined the use of anti-social behaviour orders (ASBOs) in relation to young people with learning disabilities.
Source: Rachel Fyson and Joe Yates, 'Anti-social behaviour orders and young people with learning disabilities', Critical Social Policy, Volume 31 Issue 1
Links: Abstract
Date: 2011-Jan
A report brought together information on the characteristics of people in England with learning disabilities, including the services and supports that they used. It summarized data on health, education, adult social care, employment, benefits, and carers. It highlighted progress being made on the implementation of key health and social care policies for people with learning disabilities.
Source: Eric Emerson et al., People with Learning Disabilities in England 2010, Improving Health and Lives Learning Disabilities Observatory
Links: Report | IHL press release
Date: 2011-Jan
A report examined barriers to political participation facing people in Europe who had mental health problems and/or intellectual disabilities.
Source: The Right to Political Participation of Persons with Mental Health Problems and Persons with Intellectual Disabilities, European Agency for Fundamental Rights
Links: Report
Date: 2011-Jan
An article presented a case study of a housing-based service, provided within the community, for offenders who had learning disabilities.
Source: Angela Olsen and Sarah Heaton, 'Housing-based support: a successful alternative to secure accommodation for people who have learning disabilities and have offended', Journal of Learning Disabilities and Offending Behaviour, Volume 2 Number 1
Links: Abstract
Date: 2011-Jan
A report examined patterns of expenditure on learning disability services. It said that the government should consider how existing datasets could be aligned in order to provide a clearer picture.
Source: Where's the Money Gone? Patterns of expenditure on learning disability services, Royal Mencap Society/Learning Disability Coalition
Links: Report
Date: 2011-Jan
An article examined the opinions of people with an intellectual disability and additional mental health needs about the mental health services that they received. Participants valued staff who listened to them and actively tried to help with their difficulties. They also wanted choice and control over their lives, particularly with regard to meaningful day activities.
Source: Alex O'Brien and John Rose, 'Improving mental health services for people with intellectual disabilities: service users' views', Advances in Mental Health and Learning Disabilities, Volume 4 Number 4
Links: Abstract
Date: 2011-Jan