The Independent Mental Capacity Act Advocacy (IMCA) service was established in 2007 following concerns expressed during the implementation of the Act that there was a need to provide extra support in the Act for the most vulnerable people. The purpose of the service is to help those vulnerable people who lack capacity facing decisions made [read the full story…]
This Canadian paper looked at the situation of people with learning disabilities in Montreal who were homeless, to try to understand the nature of their situation, The paper draws on data from people who were known to a dedicated team in the city working with homeless people. The researchers collected data from files of 68 [read the full story…]
The authors of this study look at the way the criminal justice system responds to people with learning disabilities by focusing on the first response to people suspected of a minor offence. They argue that at this early stage, the decisions of all the key players have a significant impact on the journey of the [read the full story…]
This article reflects on the protection of those deemed vulnerable reporting a research study in which the views of staff relating to vulnerability and abuse of adults with learning disabilities were explored. Semi-structured interviews were used to explore perspectives of staff in order to construct a detailed analysis of interpretations of the terms ‘vulnerability’ and [read the full story…]
People with learning disabilities, like others in society, will come into contact with the criminal justice system, potentially as victims, witnesses or suspects. This study set out to focus on police interviews and the capacity of adults with learning disabilities to give evidence in Court. Research into the types of vulnerability seen by people interviewed [read the full story…]
This study looked at the adult protection monitoring data collected by two local authorities comparing referrals for alleged sexual abuse to referrals for other types of abuse. The authors found that over 20% related to alleged sexual abuse, with 66% of these for women. Sexual abuse was confirmed in just over a 25%. They conclude [read the full story…]
