Learning disabilities (health and wellbeing needs in South Tyneside)

A Learning Disability affects the way a person learns new things throughout their life. A person with a Learning Disability may have difficulty understanding new or complex information, learning new skills, or have reduced ability to live independently. People with profound and multiple Learning Disabilities may have difficulty with seeing, hearing, speaking, and moving. Therefore, they may have complex health and social care need [1].

A Learning Disability is different for everyone. Lots of people who have a Learning Disability can work, have relationships, live alone, and get qualifications [1].

It is estimated that there are 1.5 million people with a Learning Disability in the UK, with just over 1.1 million being adults [2]. Approximately 2.16% of adults and 2.5% of children in the UK are believed to have a Learning Disability [2].

South Tyneside is around 25 square miles (64 square kilometers) wide, with a population of around 151,000 residents. It is one of the most deprived areas in England [3].

At the time of writing approximately 1,200 people are known to have a diagnosis of Learning Disability on a GP register in South Tyneside. National prevalence rates indicate that this is more likely to be 2,800 [4].

The 2021 Learning from the Lives and Deaths of People with a Learning Disability (LeDeR) identifies that people with a Learning Disability are estimated to die 22-26 years younger than the general population. This is often due to experiencing health inequalities. People with Learning Disabilities report that they find it difficult to access services, professionals often speak to them in a way they do not understand, and they want to be listened to in order to have more choice and control over their lives [5].

Nationally, approximately 20 to 30% of people with a Learning Disability will also have Autism [6]. However, Autism is not classed as Learning Disability. Autistic individuals have a neurological difference that means they perceive, experience and interact with the world, communicate and socialise differently. Autistic people may have additional needs that arise from other conditions and differences. Examples of these differences are eating and sleeping patterns, and cooccurring conditions such as Development Coordination Disorder, Hypermobility and mental health conditions.

National Guidelines

• National Plan for Learning Disabilities: Building the Right Support, published 2015
• Building the Right Support Easy Read Version, published October 2015
• Winterbourne View Hospital: Department of Health review and response Policy Paper, Published December 2012
• NHS Long Term Plan, Published January 2019

Other documents

• Core20PLUS5 - reducing health inequalities for adults, published December 2021
• Core20PLUS5 - reducing health inequalities for children and young people, published November 2022
• Public Health England: Learning Disability - applying All Our Health, published March 2023
• National Institute for Health and Care Excellence: Learning Disabilities and Behaviour that challenges: Service design and delivery, published March 2018
• Other NICE Publications
• Learning from Lives and Deaths - people with a Learning Disability and Autistic People: 2021 Annual Report
• Learning from Lives and Deaths - people with a Learning Disability and Autistic People: 2022 Annual Report
• Projecting Older People Population Information
• Projecting Adult Needs and Service Information

Putting the person at the centre

People with learning disabilities have told us the following [7] [8]:

• The support they receive is not always centred around their voice and what is important to them. The support provided can often be based on what is available in the community rather than what the person wants.
• People with learning disabilities are not consistently involved in meetings to make decisions about their own care and support needs. People do not always understand what is being said and jargon may be used.  
• People with learning disabilities do not need to always access specialist services. Where possible, they should be able to access mainstream services with reasonable adjustments. These are changes to support someone to access a service or appointment. They can often include easy read letters, phoning the person and making appointments longer.
• It is important for staff to receive training on how to support people with learning disabilities and their needs.

Housing

The people we spoke to said that there is not enough appropriate accommodation available for people with a learning disability. Feedback included [7] [8]:

• People and their families were not always clear about the current accommodation options available for them.
• They did not want to live in residential care and did not wish to live outside of the borough.  
• They were not aware of sheltered housing available for older people with a learning disability.
• There are not regular meetings with professionals to talk about where they live and if they are happy there.
• Young people are not always clear about where they will live in the future and what options are available to them.
• People are sometimes unaware of how to own their own home.
• There are delays in making changes to homes so that individuals can live there safely.
• There are not many accommodation options for people who need to stay somewhere in an emergency.
• People want the opportunity to make friends and have relationships.

Receiving the right support to live a good life

People with learning disabilities have they reported that they want more choice and control over accessing the community. They have told us the issues are [7] [8]:

• Feeling lonely
• There are not enough people in paid work and people need support to get a job.
• People don't always know what is available to them in South Tyneside and have to travel a long way to access activities.
• Professionals often make assumptions about the community the person wants to be a part of.
• There are structured routines with little flexibility in times and days. People with learning disabilities want to be able to go out when they want and where they want.
• There are physical barriers that prevent access to the community, such as changing rooms.

Supporting health needs

People with learning disabilities told us the following [7] [8]:

• Some people find it difficult to access services because they are not supported with reasonable adjustments to do this. This can have a big impact on their health.
• Some people are not sure what services are available to provide support around different health needs.
• When people with learning disabilities do access services, professionals are not always sure what the person's needs are and how best to support them.
• There are lots of people with a learning disability on strong medication. People have told us that they are not always sure what the medication is, why they need it and what the side effects are.
• Mental health services could work better to support people to use their services.
• People with learning disabilities and their families / carers are not always involved in the design of health services.

The JSNAA aims to support the development of a lifespan approach for supporting people with learning disability and to reduce health inequalities to create a parity of esteem.

Putting the person at the centre

People with a learning disability in South Tyneside have worked with us in partnership to help us to understand what matters to them. 

Housing

People with a learning disability have told us:

• A variety of accessible housing options are available.
• There is accessible information about housing.
• People have choice and control over where they live.

Being part of the community

People with learning disabilities should have choice and control over what they want to access, where and when they access it.

Health and wellbeing 

People with a learning disability should be able to access health services that everyone else accesses and have the right support available to do this.

People with learning disabilities are at greater risk of dying earlier than the general population. However, there are specific factors which increase the risk. Data from GP records in June 2022 identifies the following.

Deprivation

The 2022 LeDeR report identified that 25% of people with a learning disability, who died, lived in the most deprived areas. [9] Regionally, people with a learning disability are more likely to live in areas that are classed as being in the 20% most deprived in the country (IMD Quintile 1) [10]. Nearly 50% of adults with a learning disability live in IMD Quintile 1.

Employment

Only 3.2% of people with a learning disability are in employment [10]. In addition, a third of people with a learning disability are unemployed or actively seeking work. A larger proportion of people with a learning disability and autism are in education or training, compared to people with a learning disability only. This may be because autistic people are tending to be younger than the learning disabilities population as a whole [10]. The benefits of being in paid employment include increased income and improved wellbeing. There is a direct correlation between unemployment and adverse outcomes generally, not just in relation to socio-economic considerations, but in relation to other outcomes such as health and wellbeing [11]. 

Obesity

Nearly 80% of people with a learning disability in the North East and North Cumbria who are aged 18 and over have had their BMI recorded. Of the people with a recorded BMI, 45% of adults with a learning disability only are obese [10]. 

For the general population, being overweight is associated with an increased risk of [12]:

• Cardiovascular disease
• Diabetes
• Some cancers
• Stigma and bullying in childhood
• Poor mental health in adulthood

Nationally, data on people with learning disabilities from primary care data shows that people with learning disabilities have higher rates of conditions associated with being overweight, such as diabetes, heart failure and strokes [12]. The most prevalent comorbidities for people with learning disabilities regionally are identified in the tables below.

Comorbidities

Regionally, people with a learning disability only are more likely to have the following than the general population [10]:

• Asthma (11 in every 100 adults)
• Diabetes (11 in every 100 adults)
• Epilepsy (17 in every 100 adults)
• Depression (14 in every 100 adults)

In addition, people with a learning disability and / or autism are more likely to have anxiety disorder than the general population. That is 22 in every 100 adults [10].

National data from the 2022 LeDeR report identified that epilepsy was the long-term condition that was most strongly associated with dying at a younger age, with 37% of the deaths reported having epilepsy as a long-term health condition [9].

The tables below indicate the recorded number of South Tyneside residents diagnosed with learning disabilities and / or autism. The number of individuals with learning disabilities is compared to other neighbouring areas in the North East and North Cumbria (NENC) Integrated Care Board. Further information around autism data can be found in the autism JSNAA.

The data below comes from GP clinical systems [10], as extracted from RAIDR (Rapid Actionable Insight Driving Reform) system. It therefore only includes those people with learning disabilities known to primary care.

Data shown is as of June 2022, the full year data for 2023 is not yet available, therefore the most recent information for the full year has been used.

The number of people with a learning disability only known to Primary Care in South Tyneside was 907, representing 0.8% of the predicted prevalence of the population with a recorded learning disability. [10]. Predicted prevalence rates indicate the figure should be closer to 2800 people [13]. See page 22 for further detail.

The NENC data highlights:

• 61% of people with learning disabilities are male.
• After falling from ages 25-29, the number of people with a learning disability increases from age 50 to 64.

The NENC data identifies the age that people with a learning disability were first recorded as having a learning disability on a GP register. People may have received a diagnosis from another setting, prior to being on the primary care clinical record.

• 38% of people with a learning disability were diagnosed before their 10 birthday.
• 20% of people with a learning disability did not appear to receive a diagnosis until they were 30 or older.

The NENC data identifies that:

• 62% of people with a learning disability on a GP register have had their diagnosis for 10 years or more.

Primary Care data from February 2022 identifies that:

• 80% of people with a learning disability on a GP register in South Tyneside identified as either British or Mixed British, Noncensus White or White British

In South Tyneside, more people are likely to have a mild or 'unknown' diagnosis of a learning disability on a GP register. 'Unknown' is for people with a very general diagnosis [10].

Children known to SEND Service in South Tyneside

In South Tyneside, the School Census data identifies the following areas of primary need across Education Health and Care (EHC) Plans and Special Educational Needs (SEN) Support [15]:

Primary need can be broken down into setting type, to include Primary, Secondary and Specialist Schools [15]:

Locally, the primary need data is identified via learning difficulty compared to learning disability. Whilst Primary Care data can be used to identify the current numbers of children and young people with a learning disability on a GP register, it is worth noting these numbers would not reflect an accurate proportion of children and young people with a learning disability in South Tyneside. This is because children and young people are not routinely diagnosed with a learning disability; nationally, there is a greater emphasis on supporting need via reasonable adjustments compared to using a formal diagnostic pathway.

However national data suggests that there are 389,171 pupils in schools in England with an EHC Plan [16], with nearly 68,000 children having a statement of SEN or an EHC Plan with a primary SEN associated with a learning disability [17]. In addition, there are 1,183,384 pupils in England receiving SEN support [16], with nearly 230,000 identified at a broader level of SEN support having a primary need associated with a learning disability [17].

The table below displays comparative analysis with regards to national, regional and local SEN need, derived from the School Census. South Tyneside currently has a higher rate of children and young people requiring SEN support. This trend has been consistent over the last four years.

Children with a learning disability in inpatient beds

In June 2023, there were 0 children with a learning disability in an inpatient bed.

People with learning disabilities known to the Local Authority

There are currently 525 people with an active learning disabilities support plan known to the Local Authority. 40 of these are S117 funded and 37 are Continuing Health Care Funded. The data shows that the number of people accessing social care has increased each year, with the exception of day services [18].

Adults known to the Community Learning Disabilities Team

Between the 1 April 2022 to 31 March 2023, there were 1,511 referrals to the Community Learning Disabilities Team. [1]

The main discipline for referral was to Community Nursing [19].

Adults known to Your Voice Counts

Between the 1st April 2022 to 31st March 2023, the service supported 132 people with 'What Matters to Me' conversations to assist and enable the person to live a life of their choosing in the local community.

There were 238 referrals into the service. The main area referred into was the Community Connector service, with the predominate reason for referral being supported to build social networks [20].

Adults with a learning disability in inpatient beds

In South Tyneside, there are 5 people in ICB Commissioned beds and 2 people in Specialist Commissioning.

Yearly Health Checks

In South Tyneside, 88% of people with a learning disability on a GP register received a yearly health check for 2022 / 2023. The data shows there has been an increase in the number of people accessing a yearly health check [21].

Accommodation

People with a learning disability and autism are more likely to live with family and friends. Every 39 out of 100 adults lives with either family or friends [10].

People with learning disabilities have told us they want access to employment opportunities [7]. In addition, rates of employment across the learning disabilities community remains low at 3.2% [10].

There is a need to ensure there is clear and accessible community infrastructure to support people with learning disabilities to access and stay in employment. This includes ensuring the offer is accessible across both children's and adult's services. There is an employment subgroup in South Tyneside who are actively mapping the employment offer for people with learning disabilities.

In addition, data indicates that 2.9% of people with a learning disability own their own property [10]. People with learning disabilities have highlighted how there is a lack of support for people with learning disabilities to own their own home [7]. Moving forward, an ambition of the Council is to explore more opportunities for people with learning disabilities and / or autism to live as independently as possible. One option includes Shared Ownership Schemes, which have been set up in other parts of the UK but are yet to have a substantial footprint in the North East of England.

Shared ownership schemes have been established as a low-cost home ownership option for people of modest incomes for many years. HOLD (Home Ownership for people with Long-term Disabilities) [22] is a similar government-backed shared ownership scheme specifically for people with a long-term disability to share in the ownership of their home with a housing association.

South Tyneside has residential respite services across children and adults, as well as access to day services and shared lives. However, people with learning disabilities have told us they want more access to respite in South Tyneside [7]. There is a need to review the wider respite model in South Tyneside to ensure it suits a variety of need, as well as ensuring the offer is clearly communicated.

The 2022 LeDeR report identified that 41% of avoidable deaths were from a mental health condition [9]. A learning review published by the Association of Directors of Adult Social Services (ADASS) also identified an increase in people with learning disabilities experiencing anxiety and depression due to the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, and the loss of contact with friends, daily activities and routines [23]. In addition, the local need identifies that 22% of people with a learning disability have anxiety disorder [10]. People with learning disabilities have also identified mental health support as an area of need [7]. There is a need to ensure the mental health offer for people with learning disabilities is clear and accessible, particularly around lower-level mental health. A working group has been established to review this. In addition, South Tyneside has the Quality Checker service who employs people with learning disabilities to look at the accessibility of health services. The long-term aspiration of this contract is to extend the offer more broadly into other Primary and Secondary care services.

The number of people with a learning disability from ethnic minorities is small compared to the wider South Tyneside learning disabilities population, with 84% of the population identifying as British or Mixed British, Non-consensus White or White British [14]. There is a need to understand the trends, risks and experiences of people with learning disabilities from ethnic minorities in South Tyneside. This is national trend highlighted in the 2022 LeDeR report where it was difficult to fully understand the trends in avoidable deaths of people from ethnic minorities due to the small sample size [9].

The Down Syndrome Act 2022 is a key piece of legislation which mandates that relevant authorities meet the needs of people with Down Syndrome [24]. Whilst Down's Syndrome is a genetic condition and not considered a learning disability, people with Down's Syndrome will have some level of a learning disability [25]. The legislation defines 'relevant authorities' under four key areas [24]:

• National Health Service
• Social Care
• Housing
• Education and Youth Offending

Due to the impact of the legislation, there is a need to ensure that services in South Tyneside can meet the needs of people with Down's Syndrome.

In September 2023, the Reasonable Adjustment Digital Flag (RADF) was included as part of the Information Standards Notice (ISN) [26]. Under the Equality Act 2010, organisations have a legal duty to make changes to their approach and provision, called reasonable adjustments, to ensure that services are as accessible to people with learning disabilities as they are to everyone else.

The RADF aims to ensure that health and care professionals can record, share, view, and review details of the reasonable adjustments that an individual may need. This includes [27]:

• Identify people who need reasonable adjustments when accessing services, including people with learning disabilities.
• Identify and share the adjustments needed to ensure that care and support can proceed positively for that person.
• Ensure that the information is presented consistently and is accessible wherever and whenever the person seeks care.
• Promote tailored and personalised care by identifying and updating reasonable adjustments, shared via the RADF, in conjunction with the wishes of the person and their carer.

As the RADF applies to all health and publicly funded social care, there is a need to ensure implementation and compliance across learning disabilities services in South Tyneside, with full conformance being advised by the 30 June 2024 [27].

Predicted Prevalence Rates [13]

This table indicates that the number of people with learning disabilities, including those with moderate to severe learning disabilities is predicted to increase, with a 5% increase for people with learning disabilities, and 12% increase for people with moderate to severe learning disabilities aged 18+. The largest increase for both learning disabilities and moderate to severe learning disabilities is for people aged 18 to 19. It is, therefore, imperative that services are aware of and adapt in accordance with future demand.

All ages

The National Trust offers land and water-based activities for children, young people and adults with a learning disability. The activities are delivered by trained instructors who can provide a range of reasonable adjustments.

South Tyneside Primary Care Physical Health Service  supports children, young people, and adults aged 14+ with their physical health monitoring. This includes accessing a yearly health check and medication support. The service is part of the 21 GP surgeries in South Tyneside and is delivered via an outreach approach.

For children, young people and adults with a learning disability who are at risk of admission to a mental health hospital, they will be flagged on the Dynamic Support Register (DSR) and a Care (Education) Treatment Review (C(E)TR) arranged if required. The aim will look at how to support the person in the community to avoid unnecessary admission to hospital.

Requests to be included on the DSR is through South Tyneside's Complex Case Facilitators. Request for a C(E)TR can be made to Your Voice Counts. In August 2023, there were 4 children and young people and 27 adults on the DSR. In 22/23, there were 25 C(E)TRs, this included 20 adult CTRS and 5 children and young people's CETRS. For further information, see Request a Care and Treatment Review (CTR), or Care (Education) and Treatment Review (CETR) and Care and Treatment Review Meetings.

South Tyneside Council also provides accessible leisure opportunities for children, young people, adults and families with learning disabilities, such as Haven Point and Hebburn Central Leisure Centres. Facilities have accessible changing rooms and pool hoists.

In addition, there are bespoke SEND swimming lessons available at Jarrow Community Pool which take place every Saturday from 1:30 to 2:30pm. There is a Sports Development Team who deliver short breaks disability scheme during the holiday periods. For further information around leisure facilities, see Leisure centres.

Children and Young People

The Children with Disabilities (CWD) Social Work Team, who provide access to specialist social work support to families of disabled children aged 0 to 17. The team works with children and young people whose disability is impacting their ability to have opportunities to get the best start in life, remain healthy and aspire to a brighter future. Needs assessments identify what services are best placed to support the child and their family.

There are 3 Specialist Educational settings in South Tyneside. They are only available to children and young people with an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP). Children and young people with a learning disability can also be supported in mainstream education with access to reasonable adjustments and / or SEN Support.

Young people are required to continue with education or training up to the age of 18, to give them the best opportunity to achieve their potential. There are a range of options available, and more information can be found on the SEND Local Offer.

There is a Transitions Forum which was set up in 2019 to provide a multiagency response in planning for young people from age 16 transitioning from Children's Services. This ensures that a core group from Children's, Adults, Health Education and Commissioning are looking ahead to anticipate needs for this vulnerable group of young people.  The Forum aims to ensure that young people and their families anticipate and are prepared for the transition to adulthood, and expectations regarding future support can be discussed early with changes in transition managed effectively. The impact of children and families has been to reduce barriers to access and has had significant benefits in ensuring that adult services across the Local Area are working with young people and their families in a timely way.

A parent carer forum is available which provides information, support and advice to those families of children with special education needs and / or disabilities (SEND).

Foxden Outreach and Short Break Care service is available to children, young people and families. For further information, see Overnight care (Foxden).

South Tyneside Young Carers service is delivered by TEN North East. They work with young carers under the age of 18 and offer the following support:

• Advice, support and signposting
• Peer support and opportunities to meet other young carers
• School support
• Personal development, workshops and qualifications

For further information, see Young carers.

Children and young people aged 0-18, with a permanent disability or life-long additional needs can join the Children with Disabilities Network. The Network provides access to Max Cards, which provide free and discounted entry to local, regional and national attractions, such as Arbeia Roman Fort and Museum, Jarrow Hall and South Shields Museum and Art Gallery. In addition, Max Card holders can also access free use of swimming pool facilities. For urther information around Max Cards, see Max Cards.

Adults

The Community learning disabilities Service is delivered by South Tyneside and Sunderland Foundation Trust (STSFT) and Cumbria, Northumberland, Tyne and Wear NHS Foundation Trust (CNTW). They support adults with a learning disability with complex health care needs. This includes:

• Community Nursing
• Speech and Language Therapy
• Physiotherapy
• Occupational Therapy
• Psychiatry
• Psychology
• Assertive Outreach Team
• Nurse Liaison

For further information, see Learning disability service and Gateshead and South Tyneside learning disability Psychological Service.

Your Voice Counts offers advice and support to people with a learning disability around 'What Matters to them'. This includes support and advice with health needs, housing, employment and education. This is delivered via a Drop-in service. Members with lived experience can also access opportunities (on a voluntary or paid basis) to influence health and social care services (i.e. Quality checking primary care, coaching professionals, peer research and participating in Care, Education and Treatment Reviews).

Your Voice Counts also provide statutory Advocacy services. In 2022 / 23, there were 242 referrals made for Advocacy services with the main discipline being for Relevant Person's Representative.

The Adult learning disabilities Social Work Team provides access to a range of services to help people who are 18 and over who have learning disabilities. The team promotes the statutory duties under the Care Act 2014, as well as the priorities in the Adult Social Care and Commissioning 'Living Better Lives' Strategy. These include:

• Supporting people to remain in control of their care and support to promote individual wellbeing.
• Preventing needs for care and support through prevention and early intervention.
• Working in partnership to improve health, care and support.
• Keeping people who are at risk of harm and abuse safe and well.

In addition, the team works closely with the Children with Disabilities Team to make sure someone's "transition", to adult services when they turn 18 years old is as smooth as possible.

The South Tyneside Forensic Community Team is delivered by CNTW. They provide support to professionals who are supporting people with a learning disability who have Forensic needs, as well as people who are at risk of offending.

In South Tyneside, there are 6 residential care services and 15 Independent Supported Living Providers.

In addition, South Tyneside has shared lives carers supporting people within both long term shared lives arrangements and short term "respite arrangements". A review is currently being undertaken into the shared lives offer, with a view to expanding the offer and ensuring it is focused on enabling people and promoting independence.

Bisley Drive is the current residential short breaks service for people with a learning disability and their families.

To support adults with high level needs, there are two specialist supported living housing developments being built for people with learning disabilities and Autistic people. Nolan Hall will consist of 6 flats and 5 bungalows for people with learning disabilities. Father James Walsh will have 10 bungalows designed specifically for Autistic adults. Each development will have a staff base onsite. The estimated timeline for completion is late 2024.

There are also 3 new extra care schemes being developed across the borough which will provide much needed modern accommodation for people of all ages (aged 18+) and all needs. The accommodation will be vibrant and open to the wider community with bistro style cafes and facilities.  The builds are sequential with the first scheme being available late 2026.

There are 6 Day Care Providers who support people with learning disabilities to access community activities, hobbies and skills building.

Connected Caring, a partnership between Age Concern Tyneside South (ACTS), Vision and Hearing Support, and Your Voice Counts provides support to adult carers in South Tyneside. This includes:

• Advice and support based around the needs of the carer to enable them to continue their caring role.
• Access to emotional and wellbeing support.
• Peer support groups.
• Skills development, such as supporting with employment and training opportunities, as well as digital connection support.
• Working with Young Carers to support transition.

For further information, see Carers.

Building the Right Support (2015) [28]

The National model for people with a learning disability, which was published by NHS England, the Association of Directors of Adult Social Services (ADASS), and the Local Government Association, has identified 9 keys areas which supports people with a learning disability to live a life of their choosing in the community and reduce the reliance on inpatient care. These include:

1. A good and meaningful everyday life:

• Inclusion in activities and services
• Education training and employment
• Relationships with people
• Support to do things

2 and 3. Person and family / carer at the centre:

• Early intervention and prevention
• Person budgets
• Advocacy and information
• Person centred care and support plan

4. Support to my family and paid staff:

• Support and training for families and carers
• Short break / respite
• Trained support and care staff

5. Where I live and who I live with:

• Choice of housing and who I live with
• Security of tenure
• Strategic housing planning

6.  Mainstream health services:

• Annual health checks
• Health action plans and hospital passports
• Liaison workers
• Quality checkers
• Reasonable adjustments

7 and 8. Specialist health and social care support in the community:

• Intensive 24/7 function
• Specialist forensic support
• Inter-agency collaborative working, including with mainstream services
• Liaison and diversion

9. Hospital:

• Integrated with community services
• Admission based on a clear rationale
• Discharge planning
• Reviews of care and treatment (CTRs)

Following an event which took place with people with learning disabilities and their families / carers, people with learning disabilities told us [8]:

• They don't always feel listened to
• People want to be able to choose where they go out and when. They don't want to be restricted by staffing routine.
• People aren't always aware what is available to people with learning disabilities.
• Professionals can sometimes use jargon and do not speak to people with learning disabilities in a way they understand.
• There is not enough accessible information with pictures. The text can often be too small.
• People with learning disabilities don't always want to share a flat or live in a residential home.
• People want genuine choice over where they want to live.
• People want to see more of a mix of activities and support across the community.
• People want services to remain local and don't want to have to travel a long way to come to services.
• Spending time with friends and making new friends is very important to people.
• More career opportunities are needed.
• The importance of yearly health checks and how to access them needs to be communicated.
• Advice on healthier lifestyles was valued and made a difference to people's lives (i.e. advice on healthy eating, exercise and limiting unhealthy habits); therefore, every contact counts in promoting health outcomes.
• Preventative support around health outcomes needs to be accessible and communicated in a way that works for the individual.  

Areas of particular significance are: 

• A needs assessment relating to children and young people's, and adult's mental health.
• A needs assessment relating to autistic people.

Key contact: Laura Whitfield, Commissioning Officer

Email: laura.singleton@southtyneside.gov.uk

Phone: 0191 424 7638

References

1. Learning disabilities - NHS
2. How Common Is Learning Disability In The UK - Mencap
3. South Tyneside Living Better Lives Strategy 2021-25
4. Projecting Adult Needs and Service Information System
5. Learning from Lives and Deaths - people with a Learning Disability and Autistic People: 2021 Annual Report
6. People with a Learning Disability, Autism or both - NHS
7. South Tyneside Learning Disabilities Strategy 2022-2026
8. South Tyneside Learning Disabilities Strategy Launch
9. Learning from Lives and Deaths - people with a Learning Disability and Autistic People: 2022 Annual Report
10. NECS: Learning Disabilities and Autism North East and North Cumbria
11. Outcomes for disabled people in the UK: 2021, Published February 2022
12. Obesity and weight management for people with Learning Disabilities: Guidance, September 2020
13. Public Health Projection of Need
14. Primary Care Demographic Data for Learning Disabilities and Autism
15. South Tyneside Special Educational Need and Education Health and Care Plan data
16. Special Educational Needs in England, Academic Year 2022/23, Published June 2023
17. Learning Disability - applying All Our Health
18. Local Authority Social Care Data, November 2023
19. Community Learning Disability Team Referral Data April 2022-March 2023
20. Your Voice Counts Communities Data April 2022-March 2023
21. Learning Disabilities Annual Health Check Monthly Figures March 2023
22. Home Ownership for people with long-term disabilities (HOLD), Published April 2018
23. The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on adults with Learning Disabilities and / or Autism, their family carers and service provision: a rapid learning review, Published May 2021
24. The Down Syndrome Act: A Briefing, Published June 2022
25. Down's syndrome - NHS
26. Information Standards Notice, Published September 2023
27. Reasonable Adjustment Digital Flag Information Standards Notice: Summary, Published October 2023
28. National Plan for Learning Disabilities: Building the Right Support, published 2015

Local Strategies and Plans

• South Tyneside Living Better Lives Strategy 2021-25
• South Tyneside Learning Disabilities Strategy 2022-2026
• South Tyneside Learning Disabilities Strategy Launch

National Strategies and Plans

• Winterbourne View Hospital: Department of Health review and response Policy Paper, Published December 2012
• National Plan for Learning Disabilities: Building the Right Support, published 2015
• Building the Right Support Easy Read Version, published October 2015
• NHS Long Term Plan, Published January 2019
• Core20PLUS5 - reducing health inequalities for adults, published December 2021
• Core20PLUS5 - reducing health inequalities for children and young people, published November 2022
• Learning from Lives and Deaths - people with a Learning Disability and Autistic People: 2021 Annual Report
• Department of Health and Social Care: Building the Right Support Action Plan, published August 2022
• Learning from Lives and Deaths - people with a Learning Disability and Autistic People: 2022 Annual Report

Additional resources

• House of Commons Library: Learning Disabilities Policies to reduce inpatient care, Published 6 April 2023
• National Institute for Health and Care Excellence: Learning Disabilities, Updated April 2023
• National Institute for Health and Care Excellence: Learning Disabilities and Behaviour that challenges: Service design and delivery, published March 2018
• NHS: Learning Disabilities Overview, Updated January 2022
• Projecting Adult Needs and Service Information
• Projecting Older People Population Information
• Public Health England: Learning Disability - applying All Our Health, published March 2023