Adult social care and parents with LD when children removed
Research type
Research Study
Full title
The role of adult social care for parents with learning disabilities when a child is no longer in their care
IRAS ID
314012
Contact name
Mary Baginsky
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
King's College London
Duration of Study in the UK
1 years, 1 months, 31 days
Research summary
A local authority takes parents to court when there are major concerns about children’s safety. Over the past 20 years there has been a sharp increase in the number of children taken into local authority care. Between 40 and 60 per cent of parents with a learning disability have their children removed. Many parents, with and without learning disabilities, who are in this position have experienced a great deal of abuse in their lives. They are also vulnerable to further abuse.
Research indicates that where parents have learning impairment these are usually categorised as mild so they may not be able to get adult social care and support. Although there is no right to support for any parent whose child is permanently removed, in recent years special services have been set up in some areas. The suitability of these services for parents with learning disabilities has not been examined. This means we do not know if these parents use the services and the difference, if any, they make to their well-being. There is government guidance on the links that should be made with local authority adult social care departments after a parent with learning disabilities has had a child removed permanently, but many professionals believe this guidance is not applied consistently and that these parents continue to fall through a gap between adult and children’s services.
We also want to look at the support that is or is not available from adult social care and from other agencies for parents with learning disabilities when their children are removed and we shall estimate the cost to society of not providing support.
REC name
London - Camberwell St Giles Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
22/LO/0809
Date of REC Opinion
22 Dec 2022
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion