Gary Bourlet from Learning Disability England and Dr Mark Brookes MBE from Dimensions delivered the keynote speech at this year’s Safeguarding Adults Conference in Nottingham.
During the session, the pair discussed their Good Lives project. This brings together people’s thoughts and ideas about what it will take for everyone with learning disabilities to be able to live a good life.
They discussed disability hate crimes, and how there are no reliable statistics for the scale of the abuse. This is because so few victims report their abuse.
Mark referenced a survey he ran in 2023. He found that 76% of the public would not intervene if they saw a person with a learning disability getting abused or attacked.
Good Lives is a vision for change. It was developed through close collaboration with people with learning disabilities, along with their families and support providers.
The overall message – which became the overall message for the entire conference – was that we should listen to people with lived experience.
Mark highlighted that there is a lot great advocacy work taking place across the UK. But he pointed out that not everyone can communicate effectively. Some will need more support than others. Police and other services could also do with additional training, too, in recognising risks and offering necessary support.
Further Information
Access the Learning Disability England Good Lives hub here. This page includes lots of easy-read guidance relating to the project, along with some ideas for change for everyone.
You can also download the slides from Gary and Mark’s presentation here.