Govt must do more to protect Learning disabled

[Matt Hill]

The government and social care leaders must do more to tackle hate crime and abuse against people with learning disabilities, Community Care Live delegates were told yesterday.

Daniel Hardy, equal access to justice project worker at safeguarding charity Voice UK, criticised the government's Valuing People Now paper for the absence of measures on safeguarding. Hardy also called for a public education campaign on disability hate crime in which social workers could play a leading role, and said there needed to be more third-party reporting of hate crime.

Link to story here

[Guest]

Thanks Matt for posting this link. Hope you dont mind me going slightly off topic here but that link leads to this link
http://www.communitycare.co.uk/Articles ... ities.html
What is a Learning Disability.
Quote..."A learning disability may be mild, moderate or severe and affects the way someone learns and communicates. "
Now, my daughters disability only affects her mobility, she has no problems communicating or learning (she has many formal qualifications)....
So why is she classified as having a learning disability?
Can anyone please tell me why disabled people with just mobility impairments are put under this classification even though its incorrect. Also how can this be rectified please for my daughter and everyone else whom this affects .
I also think many school aged disabled children with just mobility impairments are wrongly classified into this label and can be subject to segregation rather than integration with their peers.
tinks.

[charles47]

Sometimes, Tinks, I wonder whether the "experts" are any different from anyone else, despite their training. I know several people whose mobility has suffered later in life and everyone treats them as learning disabled, and unable to communicate for themselves.

But once a professional labels you as disabled in a particular way, that's it. It is ridiculously hard to change or remove that label. Perhaps your daughter could contact your local Centre for Integrated Living, or similar for help with this?

[Guest]

Thank you Charles. I am wondering if anyone else has concerns about this issue and because this is a limited interest thread maybe not many people are aware of being classed as having a learning disability just because they are mobility impaired.
best wishes

[pam r]

My daughter has a learning disability but no 'formal' diagnosis. She does not have a syndrome, ism, or anything else. She is the only one of her peer group-they have named syndromes-that we know who had to attend a 'personal capability assessment' when they became old enough to apply for IB. Fortunately, the doctor, who realised the extent of her disabilities, told us that he couldn't understand why we had had to attend and immediately arranged for her to not have to attend ever again. That is, unless this new system requires her to attend the new kind of interview.

It is true that a diagnosis can be a 'passport' to other necessary benefits and services while those without a diagnosis hve more of a struggle.
Pam

[Guest]

It seems the official classification of learning disability is anyone who has an IQ of 70 or less.

[Scally]

It seems the official classification of learning disability is anyone who has an IQ of 70 or less.

It's just as well there isn't a compulsory IQ test for Tory MP's then...

[Lazydaisy]

I don't think an IQ is worth much anyway.

My son has a Learning Disability, Downs Syndrome.He cares nothing for everyday responsibilities, leaving that to everyone else,although does chores when asked. But give him the name of a football team, and he can tell you where their ground is, who they last played against,and who their captain and manager are.

Musically, he can hear one or two notes from thousands of songs, and name the song and singer immediately. It does not matter what the age of the song is, or who the singer is.

He can name all the parts of a horse accurately, and understands how to care for a horse, and which bits are sensitve and not to be touched.

In the general way of things ,his IQ is perceived as low, but who is getting more from life? I am the one who does all his correspondence and ensures his clothes are apppropriate, and I am the one who makes the decisions about his diabetes needs(with the Drs advice of course)I am the one who fights on his behalf so that he can access facilities.He spends his life doing precisely what he wants to do.I love him with all my heart, but I do sometimes wish that he would understand everyday responsibilities.

[pixienubbins]

ive supprisingly got a very high IQ, but im dyslexic (why give people who cant spell very well such a hard lable to spell?)

amys classed as learning dissabilty and it annoys me, she is a very bright lil girl, but the school provided her with a help lady who is lovely and all she does is help amy get changed for PE as she can do everything else ok.
The school have said amy doesnt need her own lady the T.A can help but some one abve the school has said she does --- work that out- i cant

[MaryB]

Just seen this so thought I would post my experience.
My oldest has an IQ of 69 but this was done under full psychometric testing and it was found his working memory is below zero, so as wm underpins all learning this is the cause of his low IQ and therefore crucial to his education.
It has really caused problems for school by way of teaching style but the full psychometric tests have been the best piece of armoury we have ever had, it means he cannot just be bundled in with general LD's.
In response to the original poster I would like to point out that the situation also happens in reverse in that my son is quite a gifted athlete and more than capable of competing alongside mainstream peers but because he is in special school their inter county athletics meets means he is throwing sponge javelins and other adapted things for both LD and physical difficulties.
At his school sports day there were people sitting behind me very loudly complaining that "that boy should not be competing" "Nothing wrong with him" "cheating" etc, strange thing is although not cheating I would have to agree with them, he didn't belong on that sports field.
Vicky