Institutions, and their problems, have traditionally dominated learning disability histories. We know far more about what happened in areas where councils established and/or enthusiastically used local institutions than other places. Local authorities less committed to institutional care must have relied more on family and other carers. This may…

People with an intellectual disability in prison can be at increased risk of victimisation, segregation and isolation (Mullen ). Prison systems usually have very few resources to cater to this group's particular needs, and many people may re-enter the community with little or no rehabilitation, poor social connections, poor mental health and…

The aim of this review is to synthesise findings from research about the experiences of people with learning disabilities who have faced arrest and jail time. After an extensive search of the literature, four relevant articles were found. The first-person accounts presented in these four studies were pooled, and a thematic analysis was undertaken.…

Little research has been published on the need for sexual education for women in secure psychiatric facilities when patients present with a combination of learning disability, mental illness and personality disorder. The development of a brief, feasible, gender-speci?c sexual knowledge questionnaire is described, which has validity and reliability…

Recent research demonstrates that despite increased attention and awareness by politicians and decision-makers, people with learning disabilities are still disadvantaged when engaging with the criminal justice system. It has been argued that shortcomings in providing support are because of criminal justice professionals lacking necessary skills…

The pattern of residential services for people with intellectual disability in Ireland has seen many positive developments in recent years, with more places made available in residential homes within both community- and campus-based accommodation. This paper reports on the findings of a study which explored families' views regarding the movement…

This paper is a narrative analysis of the accounts of six older people with Down's syndrome who spent part of their childhood in institutional environments. The study aimed to find out how the participants talked about themselves. Different types of narrative analysis were used, including those of Murray ("Qualitative psychology: a practical guide…

This audit investigated residential staff beliefs around pain thresholds and strategies they adopt to recognise and manage pain in people with learning disabilities across Surrey. A structured interview was constructed to elicit information. Results demonstrated that pain is not being effectively recognised or managed by residential staff in…

Many residential group settings for people with learning difficulties do not provide individuals with the private space in which they can explore their sexual relationships in a safe and dignified manner. Lack of agreed private spaces seriously infringes the individual's human rights. Many people with learning difficulties who lack privacy have no…

This article discusses some of the clinical and practical issues in relation to sex offender treatment in prisons and compares, through the experience of one offender who has been called Sam, how the experiences may differ between offenders with and without learning disabilities. It gives a brief overview of how programmes have developed in…

We aimed to explore in detail the sexual lives and behaviour of men with mild learning disabilities living both in community and in secure hospital settings. We wanted to generate hypotheses about them and identify potential unmet needs. We used a narrative interview that focused on areas such as relationships, sex education, contraception and the…

This paper is the synthesis of two pre-existing studies. It details the experiences of nine people with mild/moderate learning disabilities who self injure, and those who work with them. At the time of this study the participants were living and working in a medium secure unit at Calderstones NHS Trust in Lancashire. A phenomenological approach…

The aim of this qualitative study was to provide an insight into the perceptions of older parents of learning disabled people on the future accommodation needs of their adult children. Semi-structured interviews were used to seek parental awareness of residential options available, concerns in relation to future accommodation and the preferred…

This article is based on a study undertaken in 2005. It was conducted under the supervision of Professor Carolyn Kagan and with the approval of an ethics committee from the department of psychology and speech pathology at Manchester Metropolitan University. Case examples are explored of two male young offender prisoners who have Asperger syndrome…

The appropriateness and justification of physical restraint procedures in secure learning disability settings is an emotive issue. This paper examines the views of service users (n = 10) from secure residential facilities who are restrained frequently. Using a semi-structured interview schedule, Service users were interviewed about their restraint…