physical and learning disabilities

The Advocacy Conference 2003 : making advocacy more accessible

This conference report examines the issues relating to making advocacy more accessible for everyone. Specifically, the report looks at what can be done to promote diversity and inclusion, the importance of advocacy for people with dementia, what children and young people want from advocacy, and the advocacy needs of deaf, deafblind and hard of hearing people.

Justice denied: a summary of our investigation into the care and treatment of Ms A

Ms A is a 67 year old woman with a learning disability who has been in the care of the local authority since she was eight years old. This investigation into Ms A’s care was initiated in September 2006, after the Mental Welfare Commission was contacted by a housing association who were concerned about her vulnerability. They said Ms A had reported being raped. When they contacted the police, they discovered that similar assaults were alleged to have taken place previously.

Joint area reviews 2007-08: report on outcomes

This report is based on evidence from joint area reviews (JARs) conducted in 73 local authority areas April 2007-July 2008. Key findings, recommendations and methodology are followed by sections on safeguarding; looked after children; children and young people with learning difficulties and/or disabilities; additional, education and other investigations; and service management and capacity to improve. Annexes give an overview of JAR grades awarded since April 2007 under the new methodology and a full list of JARs since April 2007.

SCIE Position paper 3: Has service user participation made a difference to social care services?

The Social Care Institute for Excellence (SCIE) wants to bring together a lot of knowledge about social care, so that information on what works best is available to everyone. This Position paper is about how social care services can be made better by the people who use them - that is, the service users themselves. It brings together the main findings from six reviews that looked at whether service user participation made a difference to changing and improving social care services.

Disabled prisoners: a short thematic review on the care and support of prisoners with a disability

The National Offender Management Service is subject to the requirements of the Disability Discrimination Act. This thematic report draws together information from prisoner surveys and inspection reports between 2006 and 2008, together with responses from 82 prison disability liaison officers (DLOs), to examine how well prisons are currently able to discharge these duties. Areas covered include: environment and relationships; safety; health services; activities; and resettlement. The report makes a number of recommendations.

Health Action Planning and Health Facilitation for people with learning disabilities: good practice guidance

The purpose of this guidance is to describe and clarify good practice in health facilitation and health action planning and support localities to make progress on this and on reducing health inequalities experienced by people with learning disabilities. It builds on previous DH guidance and reflects the learning that has taken place since 2002 along with key recommendations of relevant recent reports and research. Short examples of good practice are included throughout.

SCIE Guide 8: Adult placements and person-centred approaches

Adult placements are not a new idea. For centuries, vulnerable people haven been cared for by people other than their family in their homes. But it wasn't until the 1970s and early 1980s however, that adult placement schemes, as an organised service, really took off in the UK. The guide has been developed to inform future guidance for local authority commissioners. It identifies relevant national minimum standards and highlights findings and case examples from the practice survey, as well as from the literature where available.

Scottish Executive response to recommendations made in the report 'Moving forward: review of NHS wheelchair and seating services in Scotland'

The Scottish Executive welcomes the independent Review of the NHS Wheelchair and Seating Service, 'Moving Forward – Review of NHS Wheelchair and Seating Services in Scotland: March 2006', as a comprehensive critique of existing services from the viewpoint of users and carers.

The Executive’s response addresses the 40 recommendations. A number of linked/parallel policy initiatives which support the implementation of recommendations have also been identified.