Adult social workers and parents with learning disabilities

Parents with learning disabilities (LD) often require support to ensure their children’s wellbeing. Parents who have a diagnosed learning disability are eligible for support from a Learning Disability team. They are also entitled to support under the Care Act (2014) from Adult Services alongside parents who have a milder intellectual impairment and/ or no formally diagnosed learning disability.

These parents are often over-represented in the Child Protection System and are disproportionately likely to have their children removed from their care. Literature focusing on children’s social workers’ response to these parents indicates that they find working with them difficult and that they are concerned about their lack of knowledge about parents’ needs, a lack of appropriate services and communication between workers/services. There is no specific literature that focuses on Adult and LD social workers’ response to these parents. It is not known if parents are provided with support by Adult Services or if, when and how LD teams work with parents with diagnosed LD.

• Aims

  This study aimed to investigate how Adult and LD social workers identify and engage with these parents and if, how and when they provide them with support.

• Methods

  In 5 Local Authorities, any relevant policies discussing how parents with learning disabilities should be supported were analysed using an interpretative policy analysis. 4 out of 5 areas had joint working protocols between Adults and Children’s services.

  Online interviews were undertaken with managers and commissioners about the local policy context and how they believed services responded to parents. Online focus groups with social workers from:

  • Learning Disability team (4 out of the 5 areas had a learning disability team)
  • Generic team
  • Children’s services

  In these focus groups a vignette was used to discuss how workers perceived the parents’ needs, which service would respond to the parents and any relevant local policies. The vignette initially indicated that the parents might have a mild or borderline learning disability, it was then revealed that they had a diagnosed learning disability. Interviews with parents with learning disabilities focused on the characteristics of a good adult social worker.

  Parents were invited to take part through adult services and in two areas via a local advocacy group and were provided with easy read materials and videos about the project. There was an option of using relationship map and pictures etc in the interview.

  The project was guided by 2 advisory groups: parents with learning disabilities from SpeakUp Rotherham and professionals including service managers, advocates, social workers, ADASS representatives.

• Findings and resources

  Read the findings report

  Working Together with Parents Network – a free-to-join network that supports professionals working with parents with learning disabilities and learning difficulties and their children.

  • Local Authorities (LAs) need to be aware of the number of parents with a milder or borderline learning disabilities in their area who may be eligible for support under the Care Act.
  • LAs should develop joint working protocols between Children’s and Adult services. These should involve generic services as well as the adult learning disability team and discuss how support for parents will be funded. (Example outline protocol available here: Resources | School for Policy Studies | University of Bristol)
  • LAs should ensure effective communication between Adult and Children’s services. Strategies could include joint meetings/practice discussions, parents with learning disabilities champions or the development of communities of practice.
  • LAs should recognise that parents with learning disabilities may need long term support. Creativity regarding the provision and funding of support for these parents is needed and LAs need care providers who can work with adults and their children, taking a whole family approach. LA could consider the use of direct payments or Shared Lives.
  • Adult services should review their response to parents with a milder or borderline learning disability who show an appearance of need and may be eligible for support under the Care Act, and review their eligibility criteria for support from learning disabilities teams.
  • For Adult social workers there can be a tension between empowering parents and the consequences for the parents of refusing a Care Act assessment, i.e. parents may not be able to access support with their parenting. Parents need to be supported to understand the purpose of a Care Act assessment and workers need to be satisfied that parents understand the possible consequences of withholding consent for this.
  • Training should be provided to Adult and Children’s social workers about working together and working with parents with learning disabilities.
  • Parents were unclear about the difference between Children’s and Adult social workers so clear and accessible guidance is needed.
  • Parents with learning disabilities should always have a named social adult worker available to them.
  • All social workers, managers and commissioners need to be aware of the Good Practice Guidance on working with parents with a learning disability FINAL 2021 WTPN UPDATE OF THE GPG.pdf (bristol.ac.uk).

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  Blog – Exploring the role of adult social workers in supporting parents with learning disabilities