Participants
Around 145,000 adults in England have severe learning disabilities (0.28% of the total population) and a further 1.25 million people (2.5% of the total population) have mild and moderate learning disabilities. (‘Valuing People’ 2001).
It is estimated that over 17% of all families in England are affected by learning disability.
Adults with learning disabilities live:
- Hospital 1%
- With parents 50%2
- With other relatives 12%
- Alone 4%
- With partner 3%
- With supporting people 11%
- In residential care 19%
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It is estimated that around 30,000 adults with learning disabilities in the UK live with their parents. For every person with a learning disability, there are over four other people affected within the family – parents, siblings and members of the extended family.
Nearly 20% of pupils in English schools have some form of identified Special Educational Needs (SEN), with nearly quarter of a million having a statement allocating funds to their support. A recent Times Educational Supplement Survey revealed that 37% of teachers had no initial teacher training in working with pupils with SEN, and 23% had only had a day or less.
Only 17% of people with learning disabilities of working age are in paid employment compared to 80% of non-disabled people.
A disproportionate number of people from South Asian, black and minority ethnic communities suffer from learning disabilities.
