What next? opportunities for young people with learning disabilities after leaving school

Abstract available: p.

Parents with learning disabilities - the lived experience - a study for equal say, Glasgow

In order to more clearly identify the key issues with regard to parents with learning disabilities, Equal Say commissioned the Glasgow School of Social Work to undertake a small pilot study which aimed to: identify the likely demand for advocacy services to support parents with a learning disability living in the community, illustrate the lived experiences of parents with a learning disability and to highlight examples of good practice in terms of what works in supporting parents with a learning disability. A short survey questionnaire was sent to 94 relevant social work, health and voluntary sector organisations within Glasgow City. Five parents from within the Equal Say service who had the capacity to give informed consent were selected at random and interviewed to discuss a range of issues in relation to their parenting. Their experiences of being a parent were also discussed as were the range of support services and mechanisms in place to assist them with this role

Developing a model of citizenship for application within health and social care contexts : a community-based participatory approach

Background Citizenship as a concept has often been understood in terms of the duties, rights, obligations, and functions a person has as a member of society. In health and social care policy and practice, the term has broader reach. This study explored what citizenship means to people with recent experience of mental illness, a long-term physical health condition, or involvement with the criminal justice, as well as to people who did not primarily identify as having experienced any of these major life disruptions. The aim was to develop an empirical model of citizenship to be applied within health and social care contexts. Methods We employed a mixed-methods, community-based participatory research approach, which included conducting ten focus groups (n=77 [A: yes participants) to generate statement items about the meaning of citizenship, and holding concept-mapping sessions with participants from the stakeholder groups (n=45) to categorise and rate each item in terms of importance and achievement. The number of statement items generated from focus groups was reduced from 703 to 110 and then to 58 following an online survey to ask participants (n=242) to rate items according to their clarity and relevance to the concept of citizenship. Multidimensional scaling and hierarchical cluster analysis were used to develop a five-cluster model of citizenship. Findings 110 statement items about the meaning of citizenship were generated from the focus groups, and were reduced to 58 following the online survey. We identified five clusters representing the personal meanings of citizenship for participants: building relationships, autonomy and acceptance, access to services and supports, values and social roles, and civic rights and responsibilities. These clusters informed the development of the empirical model of citizenship to be applied within health and social care policy and practice. Interpretation This multidimensional model of citizenship provides an empirical framework for policy makers and practitioners to set citizenship-based initiatives that contribute to the recovery and social inclusion of people who have experienced major life disruptions. This model will inform the development of a citizenship tool to facilitate discussions around citizenship

From individual problem to family centred practice : the challenges for social workers in supporting parents with learning disabilities

Social workers are under pressure to support an increasingly diverse range of families, despite having less resources to draw on as a result of austerity measures. One such group of families is those where one or both parents has a learning disability. While we do not have accurate data on the number of families affected, it is estimated that there are currently around 5000 families in Scotland (Stewart and MacIntyre, 2016). These families face significant disadvantage and are likely to be living in poverty, in poor housing and without employment (MacIntyre and Stewart, 2012). They are also far more likely to be subject to child protection measures than other families and around 40% will have their children removed (Emerson, et al 2005). Over the last ten years, evidence has suggested (Stewart and MacIntyre, 2016) that taking a ‘family focused’ approach that acknowledges the needs of both children and parents is the most effective way to support such families. The research argues that taking a ‘whole family’ approach is essential when working with families where there is parental learning disability. Despite this families continue to fall between the gap of children and families and adult social work services. It is argued that conceptualising these families as ‘vulnerable’ directly contributes to their marginalisation. While being labelled as vulnerable is essential to access services given the increasingly stringent eligibility criteria in operation, the label impacts negatively on assumptions about the capacity of parents with learning disabilities to parent. This leaves social workers with a significant ethical dilemmas as they consider how best to support families going forward

Review of Social Work Education : To What Extent Should Social Work Education have a Stronger Focus on Community Development and Engagement?

How is community development and community engagement currently taught within social work programmes in Scotland? How might this be strengthened across existing programmes as a means to support implementation of current Scottish Government policies around strong, resilient and supportive communities? What role do social workers adopt in community development and engagement in other countries and how is this supported by their education and training

Understanding and promoting student mental health in Scottish higher education - a mapping exercise

There has been an increase in the incidence of mental health difficulties among HE students over the past decade. Official statistics show that the proportion of undergraduates declaring a mental health difficulty on entry to HE rose from 5 in every 10,000 in 1994-5 to 30 in every 10,000 in 2004-5. Incidence of severe psychological problems has increased, and student mental health is generally worse than that of the general population (for agematched populations). Anxiety and depression are the most commonly noted difficulties. The research review identified a relationship between mental health and the following factors: finances, accommodation, academic issues, university systems and social factors. Academic issues, and specifically coursework, emerged as particularly related to stress levels and mental health issues

Adopting a community based participatory research approach to explore citizenship in mental health within the Scottish context

Citizenship is a concept often understood in terms of the duties, rights, obligations and functions a person has as a member of society. In mental health policy and practice, however, the term has broader reach. People with lived experience of mental health problems (MHPs), an often marginalised and excluded population, face obstacles to gaining the full range of opportunities that are typically available to the population in general. Citizenship, as a framework for supporting the social inclusion and participation in society of people with experience of MHPs, is receiving increased attention internationally in academia, policy and health and social care practice. Community Based Participatory Research (CBPR) principles were used to develop a conceptual framework of citizenship for people experiencing MHPs and/or other life disrupting events in Scotland. The use of CBPR replicated an approach adopted as part of an international collaboration in understanding citizenship across diverse social and cultural contexts. CBPR comprises of a range of approaches and techniques which aim to transfer the ‘power’ from the researcher to the participants. Participants have control over the research agenda, its process and actions. Most importantly, peers researchers are involved in all stages of the research process including collecting data and analysing and reflecting on the data generated in order to obtain the findings and draw conclusions from the research. Reflecting on adopting a CBPR approach, it is argued that it encourages the development of a model of citizenship that is entirely grounded in the perspectives and lived experiences of people experiencing MHPs. The need for adequate resources, preparatory work, training, research management and reflexive practice are key to the success of a CBPR approach with peer researchers

Concept mapping in context as a means of understanding how people with lived experience of mental health problems make sense of citizenship

People with lived experience of mental health problems (MHPs) are often marginalised and have difficulty achieving community inclusion. Citizenship provides a means of understanding what is necessary for marginalised individuals and groups to gain a sense of belonging within their communities. Developing a model of citizenship provides a basis for understanding the components of community integration and social inclusion that are often underdeveloped for people who experience MHPs. Concept mapping was used to produce visual representations and maps of ideas of how people with lived experience of MHPs made sense of the concept of citizenship within the Scottish context. A mixed methods participatory methodology was adopted, consisting of the following steps: (1) preparation (including recruiting peer researchers and identifying key stakeholder groups, (2) generating statement items through focus groups (n =77) with key stakeholder groups, (3) structuring through participants sorting and rating statement items, (4) visual representation of statement items through computation of concept maps, using multidimensional scaling and cluster analysis, (5) interpreting conceptual maps of citizenship, and (6) utilisation of a conceptual model. Reflecting on adopting a concept mapping approach, it encourages the expression of the conceptualisation of citizenship to be entirely grounded in the language of the participants; and yields a graphic outcome which displays all major domains of citizenship and their inter-relationships. It entails cognitive processes that involve decision-making about the relationship between fairly abstract concepts and an ability to sort and make connections between these. Consideration as to how this method could be adapted to incorporate other forms of media such as art and photography, when working with participants with, for example, developmental and/or cognitive challenges, is an exciting area that warrants further investigation. It is essential that the conceptual model of citizenship is contextualised through drawing upon the personal accounts and experiences of participants within their given communities

Creating a longitudinal dataset of care experienced children in Scotland – Administrative Data Research Scotland.

To create a dataset which describes the care experience of children in Scotland data.  To share with analysts in a safe setting to allow linkage, and provide information on the strengths and weaknesses. To gather feedback on its use to inform future collections and improve experience of future users. The dataset was created by combining 11 years of data provided to Scottish Government by local authorities.  The resulting longitudinal dataset includes details of the children, the periods of care including the type of care setting, along with the legal basis for this care, and information on the destination of the child following care.  Detailed information about the dataset is provided along with a background document in how the dataset was constructed.  Data quality flags are provided to highlight situations where there may be inconsistences, and code is shared to create a cleaned dataset for analysis. A longitudinal dataset has been created covering the period 2009 to 2019.  This covers almost 60,000 children with details of the care setting and legal basis.   The dataset has been indexed to a population spine, which enables it to be linked to other data.  Additional derived variables have been added, and improvements made to data quality where possible. In other situations data quality is  highlighted with guidance provided on how to deal with these issues.  The results have been shared extensively with the data providers, and previous users providing valuable input.  This has resulted in improved understanding of the data, and informed the practice of gathering data in future years, and plans for official statistics  on health outcomes of care experienced children. This project has created an enduring resource which will improve evidence for policy making by allowing analysis to consider patterns of care experience and link it to outcomes.  This is particularly relevant given a review of care experience in Scotland, and the commitment by Scottish Government to keep the Promise

Advocacy: Models and Effectiveness : Insight 20

Advocacy has existed in the UK for more than 30 years and throughout this time a range of models and schemes has emerged, appropriate for different groups of people who access support (Action for Advocacy, 2006). Key features of advocacy include: independence from services, empowerment, providing people who access support with a voice, supporting people who access support to achieve active citizenship, challenging inequality, promoting social justice, and supporting people who access support to challenge inequity and unfairness (Boylan and Dalrymple, 2011). Essentially, advocacy can help individuals get the information they need, understand their rights, make their own choices and perhaps, most importantly, voice their opinions. However, it should be noted that advocacy is not about mediation, counselling, befriending, taking complaints or giving advice, although elements of these can be found to varying degrees across the different models (Patient and Client Council, Northern Ireland, 2012). This Insight draws on evidence in relation to advocacy with both children and adults and on literature from the fields of health and social care. It outlines the key elements of the most prevalent models of advocacy and identifies good practice, as well as the limitations of advocacy models. The Insight will provide an overview of the evidence base of what works in relation to advocacy provision