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The mental health needs of children and adolescents with learning disabilities in Manchester: results of a city-wide survey
- Authors:
- EMERSON Eric, ROBERTSON Janet
- Publisher:
- University of Lancaster. Institute for Health Research
- Publication year:
- 2002
- Pagination:
- 20p.
- Place of publication:
- Manchester
Just under half of all school-age children with learning difficulties in Manchester also have significant mental health needs. Significant levels of unmet mental health need were more common among children who were more delayed in the area of communication and children who had difficulty seeing. Just under half of the informal carers (primarily mothers) of children with learning difficulties in Manchester also have significant mental health needs. Significant levels of unmet mental health need were more common among carers who were bringing up a child who had significant mental health problems or a child who was more delayed in communicating, belonged to a South Asian minority ethnic community or lived in central Manchester. Specialised services for children with mental health needs only reached a minority of children in need.
The impact of person centred planning
- Authors:
- ROBERTSON Janet, et al
- Publisher:
- Lancaster University. Institute for Health Research
- Publication year:
- 2005
- Pagination:
- 125p.
- Place of publication:
- Lancaster
The initial results show that person centred planning led to positive changes for individuals. Some changes were short-lived, but some continued beyond the end of the project. People experienced ongoing positive changes in the size of their social networks, their circle of friends, their presence in the community and the extent and range of their daytime activities. Changes were also seen in people’s contact with their families and the amount of choice available to them, but these improvements were not sustained. People with a plan were more likely to have access to some advocacy and health services. Some negative changes were reported in relation to people’s emotional, behavioural and health problems. These findings are not entirely surprising given that some people find change stressful; that new environments are more likely to seem risky (whether they really are or not); and that person centred planning tends to highlight existing health problems and get help with them. The overall message is that person centred planning was beneficial for people taking part in the study. It is also effective as a policy in promoting community involvement, changing daytime activities, extending contacts with families and friends, and improving choice for people with learning disabilities.