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Adult protection of people with intellectual disabilities: incidence, nature and responses
- Authors:
- BEADLE-BROWN Julie, et al
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Applied Research in Intellectual Disabilities, 23(6), November 2010, pp.573-584.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
This paper presents findings from the analysis of the 1,926 referrals relating to people with intellectual disabilities included description of the nature of abuse and the responses to the referrals. Findings indicated that about one-third of all adult protection referrals related to people with intellectual disability, remaining consistent over time. However, the number of referrals increased significantly. The majority of people lived in residential care or supported living and this was reflected in the nature of the referrals – people were more likely to have been abused in the care home and by staff or service users than those without an intellectual disability. The most common type of abuse was physical abuse. Sexual abuse was more prevalent in the intellectual disability sample. People with intellectual disability were more likely to have experienced follow-up action, usually through more monitoring. There was a different pattern of abuse seen in those placed out-of-area. The authors conclude that there is some indication that residential situation and in particular being placed in a residential placement out-of-area may be an important factor in predicting adult protection referrals.
Human rights and social wrongs: issues in safeguarding adults with learning disabilities
- Authors:
- FYSON Rachel, KITSON Deborah
- Journal article citation:
- Practice: Social Work in Action, 22(5), December 2010, pp.309-320.
- Publisher:
- Taylor and Francis
From a human rights perspective, this article explores the levels of abuse and bullying of adults with learning disabilities in the UK. It quotes statistics from a decade of reports from Leonard Cheshire Disability, Mind, the Disability Rights Commission and Capability Scotland and Mencap and reproduces Articles 3 and 8 from the European Convention on Human Rights, active in the UK since 1998. In two sections addressing human rights, adult safeguarding and service responses, the size of the challenge is illustrated through a large, but not exhaustive, nationwide listing of murders and manslaughters of people with learning disabilities, between 2005 and 2010. The authors call these the ultimate consequence of society’s collective failure to uphold human rights of people with learning disabilities and claim three commonalities underpinning practice. Firstly, the promotion of independence and choice without adequate consideration of safeguarding; placement without regard for community dynamics; and the roles loneliness, companionship needs and social isolation, play in vulnerable adults likelihood of abuse, particularly in those with milder learning disabilities and lower support needs.
Saying no to mate crime
- Author:
- GILLEN Sally
- Journal article citation:
- Learning Disability Today, 10(8), October 2010, pp.18-19.
- Publisher:
- Pavilion
- Place of publication:
- Hove
People with learning disabilities, particularly those living independently but undersupported, may fall victim to those who befriend them to exploit them. They may, for example, be manipulated into parting with their money, taking out loans for other people who will never repay them, being promiscuous, and letting people barely more than strangers into their homes for parties. The combination of inexperience of relationships and an eagerness to have friends can make people with learning disabilities especially vulnerable to exploitative people. This article describes the work of SafetyNet, a 3-year scheme designed to raise awareness of mate crime, run by the Association of Real Change (ARC). It also describes a 6-week course on relationships run in Devon for women with learning disabilities which covered making friends, relationships, sexual relationships, and keeping healthy.
The emerging role of the Registered Intermediary with the vulnerable witness and offender: facilitating communication with the police and members of the judiciary
- Author:
- O'MAHONY Brendan M.
- Journal article citation:
- British Journal of Learning Disabilities, 38(3), September 2010, pp.232-237.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
Being interviewed by the police as a witness or as a suspect can be a frightening experience for many people; these feelings can be multiplied for many people who have a learning disability and who do not understand the legal proceedings. Intermediaries were introduced by the Youth Justice and Criminal Evidence Act 1999 to help facilitate communication between the police, the courts and the vulnerable witness. Research has shown that this measure has been valuable in assisting the vulnerable witness to testify. This study was an exploratory examination of the recent use of intermediaries with defendants. The defendant does not by law have the right to an intermediary; however the Coroner's and Justice Bill (2008-09), is attempting to amend this situation. Meanwhile judges are starting to request an intermediary for vulnerable defendants. A mixed method approach was used in this study. Unstructured interviews were held with five intermediaries who had been instructed by the Intermediary Referral Board to work as an intermediary with cases involving defendants. The themes that emerged from these interviews were then used in the design of a questionnaire which was disseminated to 33 intermediaries. The results found that intermediaries were very positive about the need for vulnerable defendants to have support. The intermediaries also highlighted that they required additional training and they raised concerns about how their role was viewed by the courts when they were assisting defendants.
Court experience of adults with mental health conditions, learning disabilities and limited mental capacity: report 3: at court
- Authors:
- MCLEOD Rosie, et al
- Publisher:
- Great Britain. Ministry of Justice
- Publication year:
- 2010
- Pagination:
- 45p.
- Place of publication:
- London
This report, the third in a series of six, considers the process of attending court, including arriving at court, waiting to go into the court room, being in the court room and giving evidence. Generally, court users made their way to the court room alone and were daunted by the formal environment; this stress was significantly reduced by prior familiarisation with the court process, the presence of a support worker, and the support of the Witness Service in criminal courts. Court users who felt they needed support were willing to disclose their condition, but were not always aware of whether disclosure was appropriate or who was responsible for informing the court. In turn, staff often assumed that identification would already have occurred and did not feel that they had the expertise to carry out this function. Where the judiciary were aware of need, the adjustments which they made were helpful to court users and increased their sense of inclusion in proceedings. In criminal cases, special measures were helpful in supporting court users to give evidence. More specialist support was only required by those who felt unable to manage their conditions.
Court experience of adults with mental health conditions, learning disabilities and limited mental capacity: report 2: before court
- Authors:
- MCLEOD Rosie, et al
- Publisher:
- Great Britain. Ministry of Justice
- Publication year:
- 2010
- Pagination:
- 51p.
- Place of publication:
- London
This report, the second in a series of six, outlines the experiences of court users with these vulnerabilities from their first involvement with the justice system until their attendance at court. Across the courts, conditions were more likely to be identified when a support worker was present with the court user. In criminal cases, experiences varied greatly depending upon police awareness of the court user’s support needs. In civil proceedings, a lack of contact with the courts could impede identification, and court users depended on legal representatives or existing support networks to identify needs and provide support. Identification was most likely in family proceedings where assessments and close contact with professionals were common. Court users were unlikely to disclose their condition unprompted. Protocols for support in criminal courts meant that court users were more content with the level of information and support offered than was the case in civil and family proceedings, where no protocols or designation of responsibility for support existed.
Court experience of adults with mental health conditions, learning disabilities and limited mental capacity: report 6: technical report
- Authors:
- MCLEOD Rosie, et al
- Publisher:
- Great Britain. Ministry of Justice
- Publication year:
- 2010
- Pagination:
- 26p., bibliog.
- Place of publication:
- London
This report, the sixth in a series of six, presents details on a research project exploring the court experience of adults with mental health conditions, learning disabilities and limited mental capacity. The research relates to victims and witnesses in criminal cases, and to participants in civil and family cases. The report outlines the background to the research and presents the project’s research aims and methodology. This research was designed to investigate how the court system supports the complex and specific needs of adults with mental health conditions, learning disabilities and limited mental capacity. It explored the direct experiences of victims and witnesses in criminal cases, and case participants in civil and family courts. The project had two phases: a developmental scoping study and a programme of interviews with practitioners, court users and carers. The methodology was entirely qualitative. Recruitment was conducted in house through contact with a range of networks and support organisations. All study participants voluntarily self-disclosed their conditions, and definitions of conditions followed participants’ own usage. A process of informed consent tailored to individual need was used for all interviews.
Court experience of adults with mental health conditions, learning disabilities and limited mental capacity: report 4: after court
- Authors:
- MCLEOD Rosie, et al
- Publisher:
- Great Britain. Ministry of Justice
- Publication year:
- 2010
- Pagination:
- 25p.
- Place of publication:
- London
This report, the fourth in a series of six, outlines the ‘after-court’ process, including receiving verdicts in court, leaving the court and making the journey home, awaiting outcomes and receiving news at home, and moving on from the experience. Hearing a verdict in court and receiving news of the case outcome at home were times of particular stress and low mood for court users. They needed clear explanations to understand their case outcome, and emotional support to come to terms with it. Co-ordination between agencies to ensure that the court user was adequately supported at this point required careful management, but there are few protocols for support provision following court appearances. Many of the court users who were interviewed for this research did not feel any further support was necessary following case closure. However, where it was required, communication and cross-referrals between service providers were important to ensure the court user was not left unsupported.
A crisis of justice
- Author:
- WALLIS Louise
- Journal article citation:
- Community Living, 23(3), Spring 2010, pp.10-11.
- Publisher:
- Hexagon Publishing
This article describes how the damning verdict of the inquest into the deaths of Fiona Pilkington and her disabled daughter Frankie caused a national scandal. The jury delivered a verdict of suicide on Fiona Pilkington, 38, and unlawful killing for her 18 year old daughter, whose body was found in a blazing car in a layby in October 2007. The jury decided that the police action contributed to the deaths, notably the failure of officers to connect dozens of separate calls for assistance. The article outlines the points raised by the author at a Westminster Briefing, called to discuss how such a crisis of justice could be overcome. It concludes that people with learning difficulties have become so accustomed to hate crime that they are failing to recognise it themselves.
Alive and kicking
- Author:
- STANISTREET Paul
- Journal article citation:
- Adults Learning, 21(5), January 2010, pp.23-25.
- Publisher:
- National Institute for Adult Continuing Education
This article describes how the Street Life Soccer project gives homeless and vulnerably housed people a chance to change their lives through football. The programme was set up four years ago in Norwich to engage learners which were considered ‘hard to reach’. The project runs for 30 weeks a year, with daily two-hour sessions comprising of an hour of team-talk, during which learners cover areas such as problem solving, communication, and team-work, followed by an hour of football. The article describes all the main hostels in Norwich are now engaged in the programme, with more than 270 men and women involved. The article highlights how Street Life Soccer has included Open College Network progression qualifications level 2 as a starting point, which are then transferred onto the pitch in order to build confidence and provide beneficial experiences for the learners. The programme has now been adopted in Kings Lynn and Great Yarmouth.