She talks to Talking Sense about how profoundly disabled people can have a more meaningful relationship with the community. My main interest is in how people spend their days - in leisure pursuits, in a job, with friends or going to college. The work I did with the Kings Fund showed that most people spend their days in day centres and there is a range of opportunities available. However many day centres struggle to find much involvement in the local community which of course is our main aim to help people belong and be citizens. We found that most people with a learning disability expressed the wish to have a better social network and to have a valued role - such as a job, going to college or being a volunteer.
Most people are in the community but very often remain on the edge of it.
One the problems is that funding is pooled and so services are based on groups of people rather than on individuals and their needs. A person who is attending a day centre may not be offered a choice of activities which suit their unique needs or wishes. A more tailored approach may have more positive benefit for people. Barbara McIntosh believes that the way forward is for service providers to develop person-centred 'lifestyle plans' for each person. The aim of the lifestyle plan is to establish individual goals and to help that person achieve them.