Services in Scotland ‘need to be widened’

Scottish health boards and councils must accept responsibility for
improving the lives of people with learning difficulties, according
to the Scottish Consortium for Learning Disability.

SCLD director Lisa Curtice told delegates at an event last week
that despite greater expectations since the Scottish executive’s
review of learning difficulty services in 2000, a lot of people
with learning difficulties and their carers had still not seen any
improvements.

“For them to see a change, we need to see local agencies, like
health boards and local authorities, taking corporate
responsibility for improving the lives of people with learning
disabilities,” Curtice said.

“There needs to be greater awareness among all service providers of
the needs of people with learning disabilities, and the types of
services available to them need to be widened.”

Curtice was speaking at Scotland’s biggest ever learning difficulty
care event, Learning Disability Today Scotland. She said the
popularity of the Community Care-supported event, which attracted
more than 1,000 carers, front-line staff, policy makers and people
with learning difficulties, was an indication of the commitment
shared by organisations to change attitudes and improve services.

“There is huge enthusiasm for change and a general agreement for
the direction such change needs to take,” Curtice said.

Commenting on the impetus provided by the 2000 review, The Same As
You, she added: “People now expect things to happen. There are
Same As You groups implementing policy locally and
families getting involved in how money is being spent.”