20 December: Survey of local authority commissioners of advocacy for people with learning disabilities The Improving Health and Lives: Learning Disabilities Observatory is working on a new project about the advocacy services provided for adults with learning disabilities in England, and how this links to health and wellbeing. As part of the project they are carrying out a survey of commissioners of advocacy for people with learning disabilities. The commissioner survey can be found here: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/RPAdvocacyservicesforadultswithLD The survey for advocacy and self advocacy organisations is here: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/advocacyforadultswithLD
16 December: Winterbourne View workers appear in court charged with neglect and ill treatment Ten people charged with neglecting and mistreating patients at a private hospital in Hambrook have appeared in court for the first time. The seven men and three women, who are aged between 21 and 58, all worked at Winterbourne View Hospital which was the subject of a BBC Panorama programme in May. They face a total of 40 charges against five victims. No pleas were entered and all 10 were granted bail. They will appear at Bristol Crown Court on February 9.
More here: http://bit.ly/v3vHNi
14 December: Adult social care and health to be integrated in Scotland Adult social care and health will be integrated in Scotland to help tackle delayed discharges from hospital and cost-shunting between councils and the NHS, under plans outlined yesterday by the country's government. Councils and NHS boards will be required to set up health and social care partnerships, with pooled budgets, and for which they will be jointly accountably, said health secretary Nicola Sturgeon.
More here: http://bit.ly/tuDHhh
8 December: Survey reveals plight of families with disabled children Nearly three-quarters of families with disabled children have experienced anxiety, depression or family breakdown, according to the latest research by Contact a Family.
A survey of over 1,100 families found almost half had asked their GP for medication or counselling, while 65% said they felt isolated frequently or all of the time. One in five said feelings of isolation had even destroyed their family or marriage.
More here: http://bit.ly/uH4yFg
1 December 2011: Government reverses its decision to stop the mobility component of Disability Living Allowance for people in residential care
Maria Miller, Minister for Disabled People, has today announced that the Government will no longer be cutting the mobility component of Disability Living Allowance for people in residential care.
More here: http://bit.ly/vb2KyM
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30 November: More funding for CQC inspections Community Care reports that the Department of Health has granted the Care Quality Commission's request for greater funding to finance annual inspections of adult care services and others it regulates. DH funding for the regulator will increase by £10m in 2012-13 to help the organisation recruit sufficient inspectors to fulfil the annual inspections target.
More here: http://bit.ly/rP7s5e
29 November: Winterbourne View - 10 charged Ten people have been charged in connection with the ill treatment and neglect of patients at the Winterbourne View hospital near Bristol. The charges come after secret filming by the BBC's Panorama at Winterbourne View, which has since been closed. The 10 people face a total of 40 charges against four patients under the Mental Capacity Act. Seven men and three women, all from the local area, are due to appear before Bristol magistrates on 15 December.
More here: http://bbc.in/sWctkl
23November: Learning disabled man's human rights 'ignored' by council and NHS A council and NHS trust have been slammed for "ignoring the basic human rights" of a man with Down's syndrome who was detained unnecessarily in hospital for months and then moved into inappropriate locked accommodation until his death.
Mr J, who was then living independently with his wife, was admitted to hospital for a short assessment after a deterioration in his health, where he was diagnosed with dementia and epilepsy. But though declared fit for discharge, he was kept in hospital for five months, and then moved with his wife into a self-contained flat in an older people's care home, which was kept locked for safety reasons.
Though this was supposed to be a temporary arrangement, they stayed there for 10 months until Mr J became ill with a chest infection and was admitted to hospital, where he died, aged 53.
More here: http://bit.ly/tpwRKs
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20 November: The Queen's Hidden Cousins The true story of Nerissa and Katherine Bowes-Lyon, the Queen's cousins who were born with learning disabilities and spent most of their lives all but forgotten in an institution. Also about life in specialist long stay hospitals and how those who moved out could blossom in better surroundings - you can still see it online at Channel 4 on Demand.
More here: http://bit.ly/slT7tE
18 November: Court ruling leaves disabled patients at risk Mencap took the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman to judicial review, on 16 November, to challenge the legality of her approach to complaints of disability discrimination in the NHS. However, the judge ruled that the Ombudsman’s approach is lawful. Mencap has warned that this ruling will continue to allow discrimination against people with a learning disability to go unchecked and lead to further unnecessary deaths.
More here: http://bit.ly/smU5EH
16 November: Conduct code and training standards for social care workers Health secretary announces plans to develop code of conduct and minimum training standards for adult social care workers in England. Department of Health has charged Skills for Care and Skills for Health with leading the development of the code and the standards. They are due to submit recommendations to ministers by September 2012 ahead of the creation of a voluntary register for England's adult social care workers during 2013.
More here: http://bit.ly/sMpEa5
14 November: Personal independence payment - Disability Alliance Factsheet F60 The Disability Alliance has produced a fact sheet on PIP (Personal Independence Payment) planned to replace working age DLA (Disability Living Allowance) from April 2013. It is based on their knowledge to date and will continue to be updated.
More here: http://bit.ly/tXwYEd
11 November: Council's cuts in care unlawful The families of two autistic men have won a High Court case over cuts to social care by Isle of Wight Council. A judge ruled the council's new eligibility criteria were unlawful and should be quashed by the court. Under the plans only vulnerable adults assessed as critical or at risk of becoming critical would qualify.
More on the BBC website: http://bbc.in/tWph0M
