Overview

This bill mandates a public consultation in England to review services for adults with learning disabilities. The review will assess the quality and scope of services across various areas, including education, employment, housing, recreation, and transportation, and consider how best to improve them, ensuring compliance with relevant legislation and the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.

Description

The bill requires the Secretary of State to conduct a public consultation reviewing services for adults with learning disabilities and their carers who meet the criteria for a needs assessment under the Care Act 2014. The consultation must examine:

• Education and Training: Access to further and adult education opportunities.
• Employment Services: Access to work experience, tailored career advice, and apprenticeships.
• Housing: Availability of supported housing and independent living options near family.
• Recreational Services: Adequacy of reasonable adjustments to encourage participation.
• Public Transportation: Whether free provision would improve access to services and maintain relationships.
• Continued EHC Plans: Whether Education, Health and Care (EHC) plans should continue beyond age 25.
• Physical and Mental Health Services: Compliance with the Equality Act 2010, addressing social and economic determinants of health, and collaboration between local authorities and NHS bodies through Sustainability and Transformation Partnerships (STPs).
• UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities: The extent of its implementation.
• Care Act 2014 Compliance: Whether local authorities meet their responsibilities under the Act.
• Data Collection: Whether local authorities should collect and publish data on health outcomes.
• Health Education England Objectives: Whether specialist training for health services should be included as an objective.

A person or persons with learning difficulties must co-chair the consultation. A report outlining findings and government proposals will be published within one year, and presented to Parliament.

Government Spending

The bill does not directly allocate specific funding. The cost of the consultation and any subsequent service improvements resulting from the review's recommendations will depend on the outcome of the consultation and government decisions. No figures are provided in the bill itself.

Groups Affected

• Adults with learning disabilities: Directly affected by the review of services and potential improvements.
• Carers of adults with learning disabilities: Their needs and experiences will be considered in the consultation.
• Local authorities: Responsible for providing many of the services under review and will be impacted by any resulting policy changes.
• NHS bodies: Their involvement in service provision will be assessed, and changes may affect their operations and resource allocation.
• Education providers: The consultation will impact the provision of educational services for adults with learning disabilities.
• Employment services providers: The quality and scope of employment support services will be reviewed.
• Housing providers: The consultation may result in changes to supported housing provision.

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