Official Report search · Parliament Workbench

Chamber

Meeting of the Parliament 24 September 2013

24 Sep 2013 · S4 · Meeting of the Parliament

Item of business

New Learning Disabilities Strategy

Chisholm, Malcolm Lab Edinburgh Northern and Leith Watch on SPTV

In welcoming the comprehensive learning disabilities strategy, we should also remember, as Mary Scanlon did, that great policy document from the Parliament’s early years, “The same as you?”, which was completed with an exemplary consultation. For all of that, we should be grateful to Iain Gray.

I decided yesterday to do my own little consultation on the matter via Facebook and Twitter and got some interesting responses. Brian Cavanagh, who was a chair of social work in the former Lothian Regional Council, and is a great champion of inclusive services for people who have learning disabilities, said that there should be

“less strategies, more champions and consistency of process that parents, carers and service users can rely on across Scotland”.

I think that “consistency” should be an important word for the strategy.

Sue Kelly, who is a constituent of mine, said that we should

“Let people with learning difficulties speak for themselves. Give them a voice and listen to what they have to say. Give them the resources and the support they need to live independently”.

Independent living has to be right at the heart of the strategy.

Another constituent of mine, called Lesley Montgomery, who has championed integrated and inclusive services for people with learning disabilities for decades, got back to me with far more words than could be put on Twitter or Facebook. She knows all about the issue because she had a daughter, Kimberly, who had profound and multiple learning disabilities and who, sadly, died five years ago. I will mention two of the things that she said. She feels that there is still too much emphasis on day centres, rather than on living in the community with more stimulation and inclusion. On that she would disagree with Bob Doris; she has always championed integration in schools and in the community.

Lesley’s second comment relates to her experience of looking after her daughter when she had to go into hospital. She is concerned that there is still too much acceptance of invasive feeding, which her daughter never liked, so Lesley always made sure that she was there with her as much as possible, helping to feed her. She also says that she had to guard her daughter to make sure that she was not neglected and that the positive things that her daughter needed to have done were done.

That was more than five years ago now, so we hope that the situation has improved. She gave me her daughter’s personal hospital passport, which she carried every time she went into hospital. It contains comprehensive information about her daughter and was available to all the healthcare professionals. That is probably a good idea. I think that things have probably moved on; there have been a lot of positive developments, many of which Lesley Montgomery praises.

In relation to health, the minister mentioned the collaborative. I always support collaboratives, and I hope that good things will come out of that. The learning disability observatory also sounds like a positive development, as do other recommendations, including on epilepsy, which Bob Doris mentioned, and access to specialist neurological services. Things are getting better, but in this area—as in any other—we can never be complacent.

The last thing that I will say specifically about health is that I hope that the Government will work with the third sector. I know that Bowel Cancer UK has had a great initiative around bowel screening for people with learning disabilities, on which it wants to work with the Government. I hope that that offer is being taken up.

Clearly, there are big opportunities on health and social care, and the Health and Sport Committee is currently considering the Public Bodies (Joint Working) (Scotland) Bill. I found the Inclusion Scotland briefing useful. It suggests that we should strengthen recommendation 5, so that people with learning disabilities and their carers are, rather than account merely being taken of their views, involved in commissioning. That is an important theme that is coming through in a lot of evidence to the Health and Sport Committee.

Search Hansard contributions

Meeting of the Parliament 24 September 2013

In the same item of business