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In conversation with Pat Charlesworth
- Author:
- HOLMAN Andrew
- Journal article citation:
- British Journal of Learning Disabilities, 38(4), December 2010, pp.242-244.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
Pat Charlesworth is a self-advocate and a campaigner. She is one of the London representatives on the National Forum of People with Learning Disabilities. The National Forum is a government-funded body set up as part of the Valuing People programme in order to tell the Government how the programme is working from the perspective of a service user. This interview describes her childhood history, how she became involved in advocacy work, and her feelings about the Valuing People programme and the future of the National Forum. Pat Charlesworth was frequently in trouble as a child, but then started voluntary work which increased her confidence and led to her involvement with advocacy. She is unsure about the ability of the National Forum to tackle the current issues in the spending review and the cuts this will inevitably bring, and wants a National Forum that could bring all the self-advocacy groups and organisations of people with learning disabilities together to speak with one voice to fight the cuts and keep services safe.
Exploring advocacy for people with learning disabilities
- Author:
- TILLEY Liz
- Journal article citation:
- Learning Disability Today, 10(10), December 2010, pp.30-33.
- Publisher:
- Pavilion
- Place of publication:
- Hove
Advocacy plays an important role in supporting people with learning disabilities to ‘have a voice’. It can also facilitate individuals to participate more fully in decisions affecting their own lives, and to support individuals to work together to improve the situation and collective experience of people with learning disabilities. This article describes research focusing on 2 advocacy organisations in the southeast of England. The main aim of the research was to explore the practice of advocacy for people with learning disabilities. The research included interviews with members of the 2 groups and observation of internal and external meetings. The results provide a sense of how different stakeholders talk about and view the practice of advocacy, demonstrating that: advocacy means different things to different people; support workers had a tendency to under-represent their roles; self-advocates were happy with their support workers; the groups operated in different way to People First; and the commissioning and funding of organisations was problematic. The article also discusses how the commissioning process is increasingly tied to monitoring the impact of advocacy, and the issues this raises around power and control for advocacy organisations. It concludes by arguing that these funding practices place pressure on advocacy groups, making it ever more difficult for them to articulate some of the real and important complexities involved in their practice.
A guide for advocates: supporting people with learning disabilities who are described as having challenging behaviour
- Author:
- CHALLENGING BEHAVIOUR FOUNDATION
- Publisher:
- Challenging Behaviour Foundation
- Publication year:
- 2010
- Pagination:
- 77p.
- Place of publication:
- Chatham
A practical guide providing key information about best practice in supporting people living with challenging behaviour in England and Wales. The resource is written for both professional advocates and family carers advocating on behalf of people with learning disabilities who are described as having challenging behaviour. The characteristics of good support are identified, with suggested questions for advocates to ask around personalisation, activities and opportunities, staff training and communication skills. The guide also looks at issues such as the use of medication, physical intervention, barriers and seclusion, sectioning under the mental health act and alleged offending. Key bullet points identify the issues that may be encountered, checklists and case studies and a charter for challenging behaviour are included.
More than giving people a voice ....
- Authors:
- TOWNSLEY Ruth, MARRIOTT Anna
- Journal article citation:
- Learning Disability Today, 10(5), June 2010, pp.35-37.
- Publisher:
- Pavilion
- Place of publication:
- Hove
The authors present an overview of a project which reviewed the literature between 1997 and 2009 on the needs, costs and benefits of independent advocacy for young disabled people at transition. The research found that independent advocates can play a vital role in supporting young people with learning disabilities at transition. Access to independent advocacy at transition can mean: young people are involved more often in transition planning; young people’s views are better represented and respected during transition planning; professionals are better informed about the transition process and what is expected of them; professionals provide a better service to young people before, during and after transition; and young people have more confidence, self-esteem and higher expectations for their futures. A case study illustrates these points and gaps in current knowledge and suggestions for further research in this area are discussed.
Speaking up for families
- Author:
- EVANS Reiz
- Journal article citation:
- Disability, Pregnancy and Parenthood International, 71, Winter 2010, pp.8-9.
- Publisher:
- National Centre for Disabled Parents
The advocacy services provided by Advocacy Partners Speaking Up to parents with learning disabilities and mental health needs are discussed. A short case study describes how the service helped a mother with learning disabilities and mental health needs whose child had been placed on a child protection plan.
Towards race equality in advocacy services: people with learning disabilities from black and minority ethnic communities
- Authors:
- FULTON Rorie, RICHARDSON Kate
- Publisher:
- Race Equality Foundation
- Publication year:
- 2010
- Pagination:
- 6p., bibliog.
- Place of publication:
- London
People with learning disabilities from black and minority ethnic communities are a particularly vulnerable group often cut off from public services and support. This briefing paper sets out the arguments for providing appropriate and effective advocacy services for people with learning disabilities from black and minority ethnic communities, and considers the challenges that advocacy service providers must confront if they are to offer support to this group. The paper looks at discrimination, advocacy, cultural knowledge, and language needs. The paper explains that people with learning disabilities from black and minority ethnic communities face ‘double discrimination’ in accessing public services. It argues that the concept of advocacy is itself problematic as it may not be widely or fully understood or easily translatable for many black and minority ethnic communities. Developing cultural knowledge is crucial in working towards race equality in advocacy services, so that the advocacy practitioner is able to respond appropriately and constructively to a black and minority ethnic client’s experience of racism. In order to promote full and equal access to public services, it is essential to meet the language requirements of those black and minority ethnic individuals who need to use advocacy services.
Helping people to have a ‘good death’
- Author:
- TRUSTAM Rosemary
- Journal article citation:
- Community Living, 23(3), Spring 2010, pp.22-23.
- Publisher:
- Hexagon Publishing
The author describes her recent experience with her 89 year old mother, and how it caused her to reflect on some practices which have enabled what she calls ‘a good death’. The article outlines an end of life care strategy, which involves: being treated with dignity and respect; being without pain and other symptoms; being in familiar surroundings; and being in the company of close family and friends.
A voice that must be heard
- Author:
- FLYNN Ronny
- Journal article citation:
- Learning Disability Today, 10(4), May 2010, pp.26-27.
- Publisher:
- Pavilion
- Place of publication:
- Hove
This article considers the barriers to advocacy faced by people with learning disabilities from black and minority ethnic groups, and then goes on to examine the views of three service users. A recent report, focusing on advocacy for black and minority ethnic groups with learning disabilities, makes the point that advocacy services in the past have not always catered to the needs of this group, leaving them invisible, and often ignored. It is estimated that 75% of black and minority ethnic people with learning disabilities do not know that these services exist, and struggle without any formal support. The author describes how one service user thought young people need advocacy services when making changes such as choosing schools and colleges, another wished that were more opportunities for people with learning difficulties to find paid employment, and the third service user stressed the importance for advocacy services to be in place early, rather than waiting until someone reaches ‘crisis point’.
People need people
- Author:
- HOLMAN Andrew
- Journal article citation:
- Learning Disability Today, 10(2), February 2010, pp.14-17.
- Publisher:
- Pavilion
- Place of publication:
- Hove
Andrew Holman, Chairman of Stars in the Sky, a social enterprise dating agency for people with learning disabilities in the UK, explains why his organisation is joining with Learning Disability Today to launch a campaign to tackle isolation. He addresses the related issues of friendship and relationships noting that in the past friendships have often been ignored by service providers with little effort made to help people maintain old friendships or make new ones. It is also suggested that independence and choice can sometimes end in isolation. Not only are friendships good for the individual but prioritising friendship can mean different, but ultimately fewer, demands on services. The author believes that compared to maintaining friendships the thought of having a long-term relationship can seem insurmountable. He accepts that things have move forward since sexual relationships between people with learning disabilities were first openly discussed in the 1970s. ‘Valuing People Now’, the Government’s new three year strategy for people with learning disabilities, pays attention to relationships. It puts emphasis on the importance of enabling people with learning disabilities to meet new people, form all kinds of relationships and lead a full life with access to a diverse range of social and leisure activities. It includes the right to become parents. The idea behind the campaign discussed here is that everyone should have access to these rights and ‘Growing Friendships’ is calling on partnership boards in areas of the country without a friendship or dating agency to set one up.
A report on the developmental studies for the national adult social care user experience survey
- Authors:
- MALLEY Juliette, et al
- Publisher:
- Personal Social Services Research Unit
- Publication year:
- 2010
- Pagination:
- 122p., bibliog.
- Place of publication:
- Canterbury
A new National Adult Social Care User Experience Survey for 2010/11 is being developed by a team from the Personal Social Services Research Unit and the Tizard Centre at the University of Kent. This report describes some development work which aimed to explore some of the challenges inherent in surveying certain client groups, and to put forward proposals to overcome these challenges. Four exploratory studies covering the client groups and areas that were felt to present the most difficulties for the proposed method of self-completion postal survey were conducted. The studies were: to explore the variety of help received by service users in completing the questionnaire and consequences for the validity of the data; to examine the feasibility of using the proposed approach and the suitability of the questionnaire for people living in care homes; to develop a version of the questionnaire suitable for people with learning disabilities and explore the feasibility of the approach with this group; to explore the feasibility of asking advocates to help service users to complete the questionnaire and the consequences for the validity of the data. The report presents the findings, implications and recommendations arising from each of these separate studies. The next stage of the work is to test the questionnaire and the survey process proposed in this report in a pilot survey.