Excellence and Choice in Learning Disability Services

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The use of residential accommodation and private nursing home facilities will, infuture, only be used in exceptional circumstances where housing with supportoptions are not adequate or available. People who currently live in these types ofaccommodation will remain there as long as it meets their needs but newadmissions will be by exception.Subject to available resources, the Trust, in conjunction with the Northern IrelandHousing Executive and Supporting People, will continue the expansion ofsupported housing across the city of Belfast. It will do this at a levelcommensurate with the need to resettle adults from Muckamore Abbey Hospitaland in order to meet the growing demand for ordinary housing from adults withlearning disability already living in the community.Subject to available resources, the Trust proposes to replace its four remainingresidential homes with a range of supported living options. Many of the peoplewho currently live in these homes have told us that they would like a place of theirown where they do not have to share with so many other people. Our plan is toprovide this for those residents in a way that continues to meet their needs.3.2 What Equal Lives says about A Fuller Life:Some comments from Equal Lives are as follows:-A new service model needs to be developed, based on social integration,drawing a line under the notion that people with a learning disability should begrouped together and segregated from services enjoyed by the rest of thepopulation.Day centres will in future provide a service to men and women with increasinglycomplex needs who should also be enabled to access opportunities forcommunity integration.Future investments in day services should be targeted at the development ofother supported placements including voluntary work and leisure opportunities.Supported employment services should be developed further.3.2.1 What the Trust currently providesHaving a Fuller Life includes being meaningfully occupied. One of the ways inwhich the Trust helps with this is through the provision of day services.Day services range from being supported into full employment, to attendance in aday centre, with a variety of options along this continuum.The Trust has already made significant progress in developing its community dayservices model in partnership with other statutory and voluntary sectororganisations. This model enables individuals, with staff support, to develop theirown plan for the week which is likely to include further education, social andleisure activities and other training opportunities.9
This supports the concept of individualisation and allows people to mix and matchfrom a range of activities to suit their own needs.The following services are in place. (They are not mutually exclusive).Service typePeople supportedDay centres 620Employment 100and trainingservicesCommunity 110day services3.2.2 Future Plans for Leading Fuller LivesThe focus for the future will be to move away from large congregated day centresand to continue to build on the more flexible model provided through communityday services. This relies less on buildings and more on the provision ofindividualised support to access a range of activities and opportunities availablein local communities.The Trust does acknowledge however, that that there are a significant number ofindividuals who are used to receiving day services in a day centre and who at thistime would be reluctant to consider more inclusive community based options.Whilst many individuals who currently attend day centres value the supportprovided there, as do their families, the Trust does not believe that a majority ofadults with learning disabilities, having the choice, would choose to spend theirdays in a day centre.In the first instance the Trust will focus these developments primarily to meet theneeds of school leavers, bearing in mind that these young people are leavingschool with different expectations and aspirations than those who have beenreceiving traditional forms of day service.The provision of centre based day support has already been reviewed by thelegacy Belfast Trusts and plans exist to re-provide existing out dated centres withsmaller, purpose built facilities providing no more than forty places at a time. Thisdevelopment is however, dependant on capital being made available.There is an understanding that some people with complex needs who are unableto meaningfully participate in integrated community opportunities may still requirea building based solution. Plans have been designed to ensure that any newcentres can accommodate such individuals, providing them with an enhancedservice at the same time as facilitating high levels of socialisation and inclusionfor them. This means that increasingly people with learning disabilities can be inreceipt of day services that are not provided through the traditional model ofattendance at a day centre.10
Page 4 and 5: 1.0 ForewordWilliam McKee, Chief Ex
Page 6 and 7: Whilst the report acknowledged that
Page 9: 3.0. SOMEWHERE TO LIVE AND A FULLER
Page 13 and 14: Level 1Many people with learning di
Page 15 and 16: Respite services will be developed
Page 17 and 18: 6.0 CONCLUSIONThis paper has highli
Page 19 and 20: Appendix 2Programme of consultation
Page 21 and 22: 1. Somewhere to live and a fuller l
Page 23 and 24: (d) Are there any other issues that
Page 25 and 26: Appendix 4Availability in other for
Page 27 and 28: Any service user or potential user

Excellence and Choice in Learning Disability Services

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