LDAG News 3 winter 2013/2014 Easy Read (English)

30 Years and Counting

Winter 2013/2014

On 14 October 2013 there was an event to

celebrate 30 years of the All Wales Strategy.

The All Wales Strategy was written by the

Welsh Office in 1983.

The aim of the All Wales Strategy was to allow

people with a learning disability to live normal

lives in their communities.

It said that people with a learning disability

should:

have choices

be treated as individuals

get help and support to live in the

community.

The All Wales Strategy helped people with a

learning disability to start moving out of big

hospitals like Hensol and Ely.

(More on page 2)

LDAG News LDAG News LDAG News Easy Read

Easy Read newsletter

“To catch the reader's attention, place an

interesting sentence or quote from the story

here.”

Page 2 LDAG News Easy Read

People started living in the community with

support for the first time in Wales.

The Learning Disability Advisory Group (LDAG),

Mencap Cymru and All Wales People First all

helped to pay for the event.

Learning Disability Wales and All Wales Forum

of Parents and Carers helped to plan the

event.

People with a learning disability, families and

people who work with people with a learning

disability all came along to the event.

Roger Banks and Sophie Hinksman chaired the

day together.

The Deputy Minister for Social Services

Gwenda Thomas talked about some of the

changes in Wales over the last 30 years for

people with a learning disability.

She also talked about the future and the

Social Services and Well-being (Wales) Bill.

(From page 1)

(More on page 3)

Gwenda

Thomas

Roger Sophie



here.”

Page 3 Winter 2013/2014

This is a new Welsh law about how people get

help and support to live their lives.

Cardiff People First talked about their project

on what it was like to live in Ely hospital.

Pauline Young talked about being a parent to

a son with a learning disability.

People at the event had the chance to tell

their own stories about living in Wales over the

last 30 years.

Everyone also had chance to talk in small

groups about different parts of community life

like:

jobs

transition

hate crime.

People talked about their own lives and some

of the problems they face.

They also talked about how to make things

better.

(From page 2)

(More on page 4)



here.”


Each group wrote down what people

thought.

These notes will be put into a report for the

LDAG to look at and think about what they

need to do.

In the evening there was a meal and a disco.

Jane Hutt AM for the Vale and Minister for

Finance talked about the Nimrod project.

The Nimrod project started in 1981 with

services working together in the community.

By 1986 the Nimrod project was supporting 150

people with a learning disability in Wales to

live in the community.

The All Wales Strategy was written in 1983

because of the work that the Nimrod project

had started.

(From page 3)

(More on page 5)

Jane Hutt



here.”


Jane Hutt is a trustee for Vale People First.

She talked about how much People First in

Wales has grown over the last 30 years.

Jane also said that the Independent Living

Framework is as important as the Social

Services and Well-being Bill.

The event was a chance to look back at the

last 30 years.

It was also a chance to think about where we

are now and where we want to be in 30

years’ time.

(From page 4)

Now? 30 years?



here.”


Easy Read Health Wales

The Easy Read Health Wales website helps

people with a learning disability and their

families to find accessible information about

health and well-being.

The website has lots of Easy Read information

about things like having a blood test or how to

make sure you do not get constipated.

The website is in English and Welsh.

There are videos to help people understand

the words on the main pages of the website.

If you need help to find or understand

information on the website you can phone the

helpline on 0808 808 1111.

Easy Read Health Wales is paid for by Welsh

Government.

The website was made as part of a project

about accessible information.

(More on page 7)



here.”


Learning Disability Wales, All Wales Forum of

Parents and Carers, Mencap Cymru and All

Wales People First worked together on the

project.

The project ended on 31 March 2013.

Welsh Government is paying some money so

that Samantha Williams can keep the website

up to date and make sure people know

about it.

Samantha Williams is the Information Officer

for the LDAG.

People with a learning disability often have

worse health than other people.

Health services do not always make changes

to help people with a learning disability get

good healthcare.

One way that people with a learning disability

can stay healthy is to have good quality

information that they can understand.

(From page 6)

(More on page 8)

Samantha

Williams



here.”


A small group of people from the LDAG are

looking at why people with a learning

disability have worse health than others and

how to make it better.

The group will tell the LDAG what they find

out.

You can have a look at the Easy Read Health

Wales website here:

www.easyreadhealthwales.org.uk.

Please tell Samantha Williams what you think

of the website.

You can also speak to Samantha if you have

any Easy Read information about health to

add to the website or you would like some

posters and cards to tell other people about

the website.

You can phone Samantha on 029 20681177 or

send her an email

[email protected].

(From page 7)

Samantha

Williams

http://www.easyreadhealthwales.org.uk

mailto:[email protected]



here.”


Dr Delia Wainwright came to a LDAG meeting

in June to talk about a project in North Wales

hospitals.

Delia is the Learning Disability Nurse

Programme Manager at Betsi Cadwaladr

University Health Board.

The project was started because there had

been some worries about the way hospital

staff looked after people with a learning

disability.

The aim of the project was to give people with

a learning disability better access to services

in the 3 main hospitals in North Wales:

Ysbyty Gwynedd

Wrecsam Maelor

Ysbyty Glan Clywd.

Learning Disability Liaison Nurses worked on

the project to support people with a learning

disability and their families when they went to

hospital for treatment or had to stay in

hospital. (More on page 10)

Project in North Wales hospitals



here.”


They worked as Acute Liaison Nurses in each

hospital.

This means that they worked with lots of

different people to make sure that people

with a learning disability got good healthcare

when they went to hospital.

The Acute Liaison Nurses worked with staff

from health and social services as well as the

people going into hospital and their families or

carers.

They made sure people had information that

was easy to understand.

They gave staff training and information about

supporting people with a learning disability.

They visited people while they were staying in

hospital until they went home.

(From page 9)

(More on page 11)



here.”


Sometimes they visited people after they had

left hospital to find out how things were going.

The project found that nearly half of the

people with a learning disability who went into

hospital either had a Traffic Light Passport

already or filled one in while they were there.

The Traffic Light Passport can be filled in with

help from families, carers or support staff.

The Traffic Light Passport is not to be used

instead of having a proper assessment by

health staff.

It is a quick and easy way for hospital staff to

find important information about the patient

and their needs.

It can help staff understand how to

communicate with the patient and the best

ways to support them while they are in

hospital.

(From page 10)

(More on page 12)



here.”


These are some of the ways the project made

hospital services for people with a learning

disability better:

Staff knew more about what people with a

learning disability need and they felt more

confident to support them.

Services in the community knew more

about some of the problems that staff

working in health had.

Health and social services worked together

better.

Patients and their families or carers felt less

worried about going into hospital and had

better support when they were in hospital.

Here are some of the changes that the

project would like to make:

Hospital care needs to be more flexible. This

means sometimes doing things in a different

way.

(From page 11)

(More on page 13)



here.”


When people go to Accident and

Emergency the information on the

computer should tell staff that the person

has a learning disability.

Better information when people with a

learning disability go into hospital.

Each hospital should have an Acute Liaison

Nurse.

Acute Liaison Nurses should be involved

before a person with a learning disability

goes into hospital or as soon as possible

after they arrive.

Information should be easy to understand.

Traffic Light Passports to be used.

Training for all hospital staff.

Staff should work together with families and

carers.

(From page 12)



here.”


Joe Powell is the Director of All Wales People

First and a member of the LDAG.

He has been talking about how he became

the first Director with a learning disability.

When All Wales People First decided to try to

find someone with a learning disability to be

the new Director, lots of people got very

excited.

But some people said that it would never work

because they did not know anybody with a

learning disability who could do that job.

The All Wales People First National Council

were sure that someone with a learning

disability could do the job.

Joe Powell said that nobody really knew what

would happen, not even him.

Joe said that we must be careful not to try to

do things just because we think we should.

(More on page 15)

A Director with a learning disability



here.”


It might sound good to have a person with a

learning disability as the Director of every

organisation that works with people with a

learning disability.

But it would not be good to give people jobs

that they were never going to be able to do

properly.

He said that All Wales People First had thought

a lot about this before they decided to give a

person with a learning disability the job of

Director.

Joe had never been a Director before and he

had a lot to learn.

He worked with the other members of staff at

All Wales People First: John Pearse and

Yvonne Boxall.

When Joe first started his job as Director he

was worried that some people would be

unhappy because he was not from one of the

People First groups.

(From page 14)

(More on page 16)

John and Yvonne



here.”


But everyone was very kind and helped Joe

get used to his new job.

Joe said that he nearly did not send in his

application for the job.

This was not because he thought that

someone with a learning disability could not

do the job.

It was because he had a bad time in another

job when he was young and this made him

think that he could never have a proper job.

Richard Mills from Research Autism and

National Autistic Society told Joe that he

thought he could definitely do the job of

Director.

But he said that Joe would need the right

support to do the job properly.

He said that any Director would need support,

not just someone with a disability.

All Wales People First already had a clear plan

for how to find and support the new Director.

(From page 15)

(More on page 17)



here.”


Members of Caerphilly People First looked at

all the applications for the job and decided

which people to interview.

The plan was for the new Director to work for 2

days a week for 9 months with the support of

Yvonne Boxall as a trial.

If the trial went well then the new Director

would start working 3 days a week with the

support of a Personal Assistant.

The Director would share the management of

the organisation with the Business Manager

John Pearse.

Yvonne Boxall would become the National

Council worker.

But this plan changed.

Joe did not need a Personal Assistant.

He did not need the full 9 months trial.

He was ready to start working 3 days a week

after just 6 months.

(From page 16)

(More on page 18)

Yvonne

Boxall

John

Pearse

6



here.”


Joe and John also felt that it was important to

keep Yvonne as part of the management

team as she has worked for All Wales People

First for such a long time.

They asked Yvonne to join them as an equal

member of the management team and she

said yes.

Joe has learnt a lot from Yvonne since he

started and is very glad that she said yes.

The People First groups were also very glad to

hear that Yvonne was joining the new

management team.

Joe knows he still has a lot to learn and that

this will take time.

He has loved every minute as Director of All

Wales People First.

He loves meeting People First members and

staff.

He is proud to work for an organisation that he

believes in.

(From page 17)

(More on page 19)

Yvonne Boxall



here.”


He likes being able to tell people what People

First members think.

Joe’s own story has helped him to explain why

services need to change to make life better

for people with a learning disability.

Joe had some very bad experiences in care

when he was young.

He says it is wrong that some people with a

learning disability are still being treated badly

today.

He is proud to be working with the LDAG to

make life better for people with a learning

disability and their families in Wales.

(From page 18)



here.”


In 2009 the Deputy Minister for Social Services

Gwenda Thomas asked the Data Unit Wales

to put together lots of information about

people with a learning disability in Wales.

This was because the old advisory group had

told her that this information was needed to

help services plan for the future.

This information was called the Learning

Disabilities Minimum Data Set.

Welsh Government paid for the information to

be put together by the Data Unit Wales.

The information came from the local

authorities in Wales.

The information was on the InfoBaseCymru

website.

You could look at the information in different

ways. For example, maps and tables.

(More on page 21)

Information about people with a learning

disability living in Wales

Gwenda

Thomas



here.”


There was information about:

where people with a learning disability live

what services they get

how much money social services spend on

services for people with a learning

disability

children and young people with a learning

disability.

The money from Welsh Government for

putting together the information ran out some

time ago.

Data Unit Wales decided not to put together

the information for 2012 to 2013 and took it off

the website.

Samantha Williams LDAG Information Officer

had a meeting with people who work at Data

Unit Wales to talk about the information.

She told them how important it was and why

she thought they should put it back on the

website.

(From page 20)

(More on page 22)

Samantha

Williams


She has told people before about the website

when they have been looking for information

about people with a learning disability living in

Wales.

But most people did not know about the

information on the website.

She said that if more people knew about the

information on the website then more people

would have a look at it.

Data Unit Wales said they would put the

information for 2011 to 2012 back on the

website so that people can have a look and

decide if they think it is useful.

Samantha Williams will talk to the members of

the LDAG about this and let Data Unit Wales

know what they think.

You can have a look at the information here:

http://www.infobasecymru.net/IAS/themes/

learningdisabilities(adults)minimumdataset.

(From page 21)

(More on page 23)

http://www.infobasecymru.net/IAS/themes/learningdisabilities(adults)minimumdataset

http://www.infobasecymru.net/IAS/themes/learningdisabilities(adults)minimumdataset


For more information or to let us know

what you think, phone Samantha

Williams on 029 20681160 or e-mail:

[email protected].

Follow us on Facebook and Twitter

@LDAdvisoryGroup

Please let Samantha know what information

you find useful and if you think it would be

better to show the information in a different

way. For example, a report instead of tables

and maps.

You can phone Samantha on 029 20681177 or

send her an email

[email protected] to let her know

what you think.

(From page 22)

?



Documents

LDAG News 3 winter 2013/2014 Easy Read (English)