Improving Services For Disabled People

Valuing People (2001) states that "disabled people often feel excluded and unheard and want to be fully part of our society, rather than being marginalised and forgotten." (DoH, 2001) It is described by some as the practice of ensuring that people feel they belong, are engaged, and connected. It is a universal human right whose aim is to embrace all people, irrespective of race, gender, disability or other attribute which can be perceived as different

Valuing People 2001 (DoH, 2001) states:

“Choice: Like other people, people with learning disabilities want a real say in where they live, what work they should do and who looks after them. But for too many people with learning disabilities, these are currently unattainable goals. We believe

This is acknowledged in official reports: Improving Services, Improving Lives states that disabled people can feel ‘steered towards choices made by other people’ , in particular, that sometimes staff, managers and parents try to control the lives of people with learning disabilities (Wood, 2010). Among other reasons, this is because of imbalances in the skills, knowledge and resources available staff , In practice, creating change in services for people with learning disabilities has not proved easy (Fyson & Ward, 2004). Much of the progress to date has focussed on supporting the active involvement of people with learning disabilities in policy-making at local and national level (Fyson et al, 2004) and moving towards person-centred planning as the lynchpin of individual change (Institute for Health Research, 2005). In relation to service developments, the emphasis has been on promoting models of service provision which prize independence – in particular a move away from residential care homes and towards supported living as the preferred option for providing housing and support. Supported living (sometimes also known as ‘independent living’) may result in people living alone or in small groups, but differs from residential care in that it is premised upon legal tenancies and individuals with learning disabilities being in control of choices about where, how and with whom they live (Paradigm,