What now for deprivations of liberty?
What will the effect of the postponement of the Liberty Protections Safeguards be on local authorities? Local Government Lawyer asked 50 adult social care lawyers for their views on the potential consequences.
| SPOTLIGHT |
A Better Future
The Autism Act 2009 is the first disability-specific legislation passed by Parliament. David Knifton looks at the duties it will impose on local authorities.
The Autism Act 2009 received Royal assent on 12 November 2009 and comes into force on 12 January 2010. The result of a campaign led by the National Autistic Society (NAS), it is the first disability-specific legislation to be passed by Parliament. Essentially, it introduces an adult autism strategy, backed up by the imposition of statutory duties on local authorities, with the aim of improving outcomes for adults with autism in England.
The Act
The Act imposes a duty on the Secretary of State for Health to prepare and publish, by 1 April 2010, “the autism strategy” for meeting the needs of adults with autism by improving the provision of relevant services by local authorities and NHS bodies. The strategy must be kept under review and may be revised. The Secretary of State must also, by 31 December 2010, issue guidance for the purpose of securing its implementation.
Local authorities and NHS bodies must act under such guidance, which will be kept under review, having regard to the extent to which it has been effective in securing the implementation of the autism strategy. In particular, the guidance must cover:
Background
Autism is a life-long developmental disability that affects the way a person communicates with and relates to other people, and makes sense of the world around them. Whilst the condition covers a broad spectrum, those affected share the triad of impairments, namely difficulties with social interaction, social communication and social imagination. Research has shown that 1 in 100 children have autism, from which it is estimated that more than 300,000 adults in England have the condition.
Adults with autism have very different and individual needs, but face many barriers in trying to access the range of services required to meet those needs. Many people with autism spectrum disorders are undiagnosed, isolated, misunderstood and unable to access relevant support. In particular, more than half of adults with autism do not have an accompanying learning disability or mental health problem, yet services are often provided by learning disability or mental health teams.
This means that many - particularly those with high functioning autism or Asperger syndrome - slip through the net in service structure. Recent research by the National Audit Office found alarming gaps in training, planning and provision that not only dramatically reduced quality of life for adults with autism, but wasted public money through inefficiency. It concluded that failing to invest in autism provision is a false economy. In particular, identification and support of adults with high functioning autism or Asperger syndrome would become cost neutral in the medium term, enabling such individuals to live independently in the community.
NAS research in 2008 revealed that 63% of adults with autism do not have enough support to meet their needs, 61% rely on their families for support, more than 40% live with their parents and only 15% are in full time employment. Support was badly needed to enable them to find a job and access the benefits they needed to live on.
Autism Strategy and Guidance
The Government is currently considering more than 1,000 responses to the consultation on the autism strategy. The consultation on the statutory guidance will take place during 2010. The guidance is likely to cover issues such as social inclusion, diagnostic services, education, housing provision, access to training and employment, and awareness-raising and training.
Local authorities, in conjunction with primary care trusts, will need to establish regional and local autism planning groups in order to:
Sanctions
Crucially, the Act imposes a duty on local authorities, in the exercise of their social services functions, to act under guidance issued by the Secretary of State. A failure to do so would be enforceable by judicial review, and might conceivably expose a local authority to an action for breach of statutory duty.
Conclusion
Whilst many local authorities have already implemented strategies in line with those set out above, the Act provides an important wake-up call to those that have not. The autism strategy presents both a challenge and an opportunity. It will require investment and training, innovation and co-operation, leadership and planning. But above all, it will require a commitment to understanding the particular needs of people with autism, and the will to ensure that they are met.
David Knifton is a barrister at Exchange Chambers in Liverpool and Manchester
The Autism Act 2009 received Royal assent on 12 November 2009 and comes into force on 12 January 2010. The result of a campaign led by the National Autistic Society (NAS), it is the first disability-specific legislation to be passed by Parliament. Essentially, it introduces an adult autism strategy, backed up by the imposition of statutory duties on local authorities, with the aim of improving outcomes for adults with autism in England.
The Act
The Act imposes a duty on the Secretary of State for Health to prepare and publish, by 1 April 2010, “the autism strategy” for meeting the needs of adults with autism by improving the provision of relevant services by local authorities and NHS bodies. The strategy must be kept under review and may be revised. The Secretary of State must also, by 31 December 2010, issue guidance for the purpose of securing its implementation.
Local authorities and NHS bodies must act under such guidance, which will be kept under review, having regard to the extent to which it has been effective in securing the implementation of the autism strategy. In particular, the guidance must cover:
- Providing services for diagnosing autism in adults;
- Identifying adults with autism;
- Carrying out needs assessments for adults with autism;
- Planning appropriate services to young people with autism as they move from children’s to adults’ services;
- Other planning to provide relevant services to adults with autism;
- Training of staff who provide such services; and
- Local leadership in relation to such provision.
Background
Autism is a life-long developmental disability that affects the way a person communicates with and relates to other people, and makes sense of the world around them. Whilst the condition covers a broad spectrum, those affected share the triad of impairments, namely difficulties with social interaction, social communication and social imagination. Research has shown that 1 in 100 children have autism, from which it is estimated that more than 300,000 adults in England have the condition.
Adults with autism have very different and individual needs, but face many barriers in trying to access the range of services required to meet those needs. Many people with autism spectrum disorders are undiagnosed, isolated, misunderstood and unable to access relevant support. In particular, more than half of adults with autism do not have an accompanying learning disability or mental health problem, yet services are often provided by learning disability or mental health teams.
This means that many - particularly those with high functioning autism or Asperger syndrome - slip through the net in service structure. Recent research by the National Audit Office found alarming gaps in training, planning and provision that not only dramatically reduced quality of life for adults with autism, but wasted public money through inefficiency. It concluded that failing to invest in autism provision is a false economy. In particular, identification and support of adults with high functioning autism or Asperger syndrome would become cost neutral in the medium term, enabling such individuals to live independently in the community.
NAS research in 2008 revealed that 63% of adults with autism do not have enough support to meet their needs, 61% rely on their families for support, more than 40% live with their parents and only 15% are in full time employment. Support was badly needed to enable them to find a job and access the benefits they needed to live on.
Autism Strategy and Guidance
The Government is currently considering more than 1,000 responses to the consultation on the autism strategy. The consultation on the statutory guidance will take place during 2010. The guidance is likely to cover issues such as social inclusion, diagnostic services, education, housing provision, access to training and employment, and awareness-raising and training.
Local authorities, in conjunction with primary care trusts, will need to establish regional and local autism planning groups in order to:
- Collect and analyse data from a range of sources on the numbers of adults with autism in their area. Better data and information about such adults will help long-term planning.
- Actively seek to assess the needs of adults with autism, particularly those outside current eligibility criteria, in order to identify gaps in provision and priorities for service development.
- Work together with other agencies, including health authorities and the voluntary sector, to understand the needs of people with autism and look for innovative and practical ways to support them.
- Provide personalised, autism-specific services, including specialist supported living services for young people making the transition to adulthood, social skills training and befriending schemes. Reducing arrangements for care and support out of area, in favour of greater local provision, is likely to provide better value for money and improved access. Simple, cost-effective preventative services such as social skills training can make a big difference to the lives of adults with autism, helping prevent their needs reaching a point where more serious intervention, or expensive crisis support, is needed.
- Establish strong leadership at local level, to co-ordinate services and ensure that the complex needs of adults with autism are met.
- Advertise available autism services and how they can be accessed (for example, by running “one stop shop” resource centres).
Sanctions
Crucially, the Act imposes a duty on local authorities, in the exercise of their social services functions, to act under guidance issued by the Secretary of State. A failure to do so would be enforceable by judicial review, and might conceivably expose a local authority to an action for breach of statutory duty.
Conclusion
Whilst many local authorities have already implemented strategies in line with those set out above, the Act provides an important wake-up call to those that have not. The autism strategy presents both a challenge and an opportunity. It will require investment and training, innovation and co-operation, leadership and planning. But above all, it will require a commitment to understanding the particular needs of people with autism, and the will to ensure that they are met.
David Knifton is a barrister at Exchange Chambers in Liverpool and Manchester
