Since the 2011 Winterbourne View scandal in Bristol, which revealed horrific institutional abuse of learning disabled people, our Haringey families group has campaigned vigorously for resettling people trapped in institutions into their communities.

Sadly, the conviction of four care workers in Durham for the abuse of people with autism and learning disabilities and the recent BBC documentary showing bullying, taunting and restraint causing pain and humiliation at Whorlton Hall near Barnard Castle shows how little has changed.

Given this grim background it is a pleasure to report on the outcome of one programme with which I have been involved that has achieved successful transitions from institutions into the community.

Ham & High: Mary Langan has been involved with the Making Positive Moves project based at the University of HertfordshireMary Langan has been involved with the Making Positive Moves project based at the University of Hertfordshire (Image: Mary Langan)

The Making Positive Moves project based at the University of Hertfordshire carries out research into what can enable people with learning disabilities to live in the community after periods of care in various forms of institutional care. Its distinctive features are that it involves people with learning disabilities as ‘experts by experience’ in every aspect of the research, including project design and management, in steering and consultation groups, and its focus on securing ‘practical and meaningful outcomes’.

The project recently reported on the results of interviews conducted with 20 former inpatients at the beginning of their move into their community placements and at follow up review 12 months later. Many of these individuals had complex needs requiring high levels of support – and some had been in in-patient settings for more than 20 years, one for 37 years. Yet they generally reported a great improvement in the quality of their lives.

The Making Positive Moves project shows that, with the right level of support organised in collaboration with former patients and their families, successful transitions from institutional care can be achieved. This approach shows the way towards resolving the enduring scandal that, 12 years since the exposure of abuse and neglect at Winterbourne View, some 2,000 people are still incarcerated in inappropriate hospitals and ‘assessment and treatment units’, often in remote places far from the scrutiny of family and friends.

  • Mary Langan is chair of Haringey Severe and Complex Autism and Learning Disabilities Families Group (SCALD).