LDIAG News LDIAG News LDIAG News Inside this issue: CoP Update 2 Report on first Real Opportunities annual conference 6 Event: Learning Disability Wales annual conference 2012 8 New Advisory Group Meets for First Time Summer 2012 The Welsh Government has established a new group to champion learning disability issues and provide specialist advice to ministers on matters affecting people with a learning disability. Aſter a break of almost two years, the brand new Learning Disability Advisory Group or LDAG met for the first me on 3 September 2012 in Cardiff. The previous advisory group (LDIAG) met for the last me back in September 2010 aſter deciding that the me had come for a new group with a new remit and membership. Deputy Minister for Children and Social Services Gwenda Thomas agreed back in 2010 to set up a new group to advise her on the issues that affect people with learning disabilies but unfortunately this process took far longer than originally ancipated. In July this year Welsh Government were finally in a posion to invite a number of organisaons and individuals within Wales to take part in the new advisory group, including Learning Disability Wales, Mencap Cymru, All Wales People First and All Wales Forum of Parents and Carers. Other members include health professionals and representaves of the Associaon of Directors of Social Services. The new group is much smaller than the previous advisory group with just 12 members including the two new co-Chairs: Dr Roger Banks, consultant psychiatrist with Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board, and Sophie Hinksman, vice-chair of All Wales People First. The Learning Disability Advisory Group will help the Welsh Government shape its learning disability policy on issues such as sustainable social services, tackling health inequalies, social integraon and inclusion. This inial meeng focused on agreeing the Terms of Reference and proposed workstreams for the group. One of the areas that the Informaon Officer Samantha Williams and the co-Chairs will be working on over the coming months is the development of a Communicaon Strategy for the new advisory group to ensure that people with a learning disability in Wales and their families are aware of the group’s work and are able to fully engage with it. www.ldiag.org.uk
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LDIAG NewsLDIAG NewsLDIAG News
Inside this issue:
CoP Update 2
Report on first
Real Opportunities
annual conference
6
Event: Learning
Disability Wales
annual conference
2012
8
New Advisory Group Meets for
First Time
Summer 2012
The Welsh Government has established a new group to champion
learning disability issues and provide specialist advice to ministers
on matters affecting people with a learning disability.
After a break of almost two years, the brand new Learning Disability Advisory
Group or LDAG met for the first time on 3 September 2012 in Cardiff.
The previous advisory group (LDIAG) met for the last time back in September
2010 after deciding that the time had come for a new group with a new remit
and membership.
Deputy Minister for Children and Social Services Gwenda Thomas agreed back
in 2010 to set up a new group to advise her on the issues that affect people
with learning disabilities but unfortunately this process took far longer than
originally anticipated. In July this year Welsh Government were finally in a
position to invite a number of organisations and individuals within Wales to
take part in the new advisory group, including Learning Disability Wales,
Mencap Cymru, All Wales People First and All Wales Forum of Parents and
Carers. Other members include health professionals and representatives of the
Association of Directors of Social Services.
The new group is much smaller than the previous advisory group
with just 12 members including the two new co-Chairs: Dr Roger
Banks, consultant psychiatrist with Betsi Cadwaladr University Health
Board, and Sophie Hinksman, vice-chair of All Wales People First.
The Learning Disability Advisory Group will help the Welsh
Government shape its learning disability policy on issues such as sustainable
social services, tackling health inequalities, social integration and inclusion.
This initial meeting focused on agreeing the Terms of Reference and proposed
workstreams for the group. One of the areas that the Information Officer
Samantha Williams and the co-Chairs will be working on over the coming
months is the development of a Communication Strategy for the new advisory
group to ensure that people with a learning disability in Wales and their
families are aware of the group’s work and are able to fully engage with it.
www.ldiag.org.uk
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Page 2 LDIAG News
CB CoP Update
The Challenging Behaviour Community
of Practice (CB CoP) met in Newtown on 20 June with a very full and
interesting agenda.
Intensive Support Packages
Clare Trudgeon (Clinical Psychologist) and Sara Bassett (Intensive Support
Worker) from Aneurin Bevan Health Board gave a presentation on
developing intensive support packages (ISPs) for people with severe
challenging behaviour. They both work
as part of a team delivering specialist services to a small number of people
who meet full continuing healthcare criteria and whose support needs
around day activities and respite could not be met by local mainstream
learning disability services.
The team differs from usual behaviour
teams in that it provides medium to long term, intensive, hands-on
therapeutic input and care to individuals via Specialist Support
Workers who carry out the service under professional guidance. It is a
very person-centred approach with a
therapeutic focus e.g. life skills, community presence, reducing
challenging behaviour etc.
Care co-ordinators, along with
Psychology, Occupational Therapy and support from heads of profession and
management all helped to develop the service model. Detailed baseline
assessments were undertaken by Community Learning Disability Teams
e.g. functional analysis, sensory profiles etc. Workshops were held with
families in order to identify needs and service provision. The team liaised
with local education and day services
to discuss options for bespoke
activities within these settings. All staff are trained in Positive
Behavioural Support (PBS) and Specialist Support Workers have office
time as well as hands-on sessions to enable them to keep detailed records.
Data is analysed and outcome measures reviewed on a regular basis.
The presentation included a number of examples of specific ISPs and the
outcomes for those individuals such as independent feeding skills, reduction
in use of protective clothing, increased communication skills and, for two
service users, a transfer back to
mainstream learning disability services. Feedback from families has
also been very positive, despite some initial concerns and misapprehensions.
Touch Trust
Next on the agenda was a
presentation by Dilys Price on the work of the Touch Trust, including
video clips of “Communicating Through Touch” sessions specifically
designed for people with complex needs including challenging behaviour.
Dilys talked about the basic human need to express oneself and be
appreciated for that expression. She then went on to outline some of the
training available for staff and (Continued on page 3)
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Page 3 Summer 2012
individuals as well as details of the
Touch Trust College of the Arts for young adults aged 19 to 25, based at
the Wales Millennium Centre in Cardiff Bay. Further details can be found on
the website www.touchtrust.co.uk.
Applied Behaviour Analysis
Therapy—a mother’s view
Parent Maria Leahy then talked passionately about Applied Behaviour
Analysis Therapy and how it had saved her child from “drowning in autism”.
She showed some amazing video clips of her son before, during and after the
therapy and the effects were truly incredible. Maria described the therapy
as her son’s “salvation” and it was a truly inspirational story.
Post-Winterbourne View —
what now?
After lunch Professor Eric Emerson, Co
-Director of Improving Health and Lives: Learning Disabilities
Observatory, gave a presentation on the opportunities for change following
the post-Winterbourne reviews. His presentation was very timely as it was
just before the Care Quality
Commission (CQC), Department of Health and Improving Health and Lives
Learning Disabilities Observatory all published reports relating to the issues
highlighted by the Winterbourne View scandal.
The week after the CoP meeting, the CQC published
its National Overview report of the inspection of 150
assessment and treatment units for people with learning
disabilities. The report highlighted significant failings
(Continued from page 2) with almost 50% (69) of the hospitals
and care homes inspected not meeting government standards, and
safeguarding concerns identified in nearly 20% (27).
In the same week the Department of Health published its interim report on
post-Winterbourne View developments. The main findings of
the report were as follows:
There are too many people in in-
patient services for assessment and treatment and they are staying there
for too long. This model of care has no place in the 21st century.
Best practice is for people to have
access to the support and services they need locally to enable them to
live fulfilling lives integrated within the community.
In too many services there is robust evidence of poor quality of care,
poor care planning, lack of meaningful activities to do in the
day, and too much reliance on restraining people.
All parts of the system – commissioners, providers,
workforce, regulators and government – must play their part in
driving up standards of care and
demonstrating zero tolerance of abuse. This includes acting
immediately where poor practice or sub-standard care is suspected.
The report also identified a number of key objectives and
“clear actions at a national level to support local improvement to
ensure delivery of these objectives”.
Coinciding with these reports, Improving Health and Lives: