Learning Disabilities
A new provider for our services - see
below
Who can get help?
If you are caring for an adult relative or friend with learning disabilities we can provide services to help.
You may require a variety of services such as advice and support, or relief from caring. Your disabled relative or friend may require day activities, leisure, opportunities or support in moving to new living arrangements.
If you are concerned about any of these matters or are interested in finding out more, we can help.
What help can you get?
Bexley Social Services works closely with other organisations to offer a range of services to people with learning disabilities and their carers. Some services are designed to help you to continue to care for your disabled relative or friend in your own home. Other services are provided for disabled people who need full time care or partial support in new living arrangements.
How do I get help?
You can telephone or write to the Learning Disability Team which is based in Sidcup. The address and telephone number are:
Learning Disability Team
Stuart House, 45-47 Halfway Street,
Sidcup, Kent DA15 8LH
 020 8269 3300
We will ask you about your concerns and the help you need. It is important to tell us as much as possible about your needs and wishes, and about the wishes of your disabled relative or friend. This is so we can assess the help you might need. If you need emergency help we can arrange that at once.
Anything you tell us will be in strict confidence. We will not pass information to anyone else without your permission. You can also have a separate assessment of your needs as a carer, if you wish.
What services are available?
Social Work Advice and Support
Social workers in the Learning Disability Team offer advice, information, support and assistance mainly to adults with severe learning disabilities, and to their parents, relatives, friends, or carers.
They can give help and advice on making plans (perhaps for day or residential care), and assist at times of crisis such as the death of a carer, serious illness in the family, or when relationships become very strained.
Social workers work closely with other staff in the Team to provide the most suitable services. They aim to help you and your disabled relative develop living arrangements and a quality of life with which you both feel comfortable.
Other staff in the Team come from Social Services and the Health Service, and include a psychiatrist, psychologists, occupational therapist, community nurses and speech therapists.
Having a break
People with learning disabilities and their relatives or carers may welcome the opportunity to spend some time apart. This may be a break for just a couple of hours or for a couple of weeks. A variety of services are available including care in your own home, with another family, or in a residential home.
Day Activities and Employment Opportunities
A variety of education, training and leisure opportunities are available through day resource centres. These are based on the individual interests of people with learning disabilities and may lead on to work experience, sheltered employment or open employment.
A supported employment project for adults who are on the Council's learning disability register. The individualised service prepares people for paid work and continues to support them throughout their employment. An innovative project that has been awarded a Charter Mark to denote its excellence of service. Find out more about Bexley
Twofold...
Moving On
We aim to help people with learning disabilities move from their family home when the time is right. There is a wide range of residential care available in Bexley. This includes staffed residential homes and placements with local families. Also we may be able to help your relative live in his or her own home. Social workers will give you advice about what is available and help you choose a suitable place.
How much will it cost?
This will depend on your income and on the level of services needed. We will explain the cost before services are provided. You may be entitled to benefits and we will help you to claim them.
Other Services
Local voluntary organisations can give advice and support and practical help to people with learning disabilities and their carers. To find out more about voluntary services, contact:
Bexley Voluntary Service Council
8 Brampton Road, Bexleyheath
Kent, DA7 4EY
020
8304 0911
A new provider for services, MCCH Society Ltd.
The Council has selected a charitable Trust, MCCH Society Ltd, as the new provider for its accommodation and day opportunity services. The ten-year contract began on 1 November 2002. MCCH are responsible for provision and development of residential and short break services, supported living and day service opportunities. They are playing a key part in Bexley in developing and improving services in
line with the Government's White Paper "Valuing People". Details of the required standards of service are set out in a set of "Service Specifications" which have been the subject of extensive consultation. They can be accessed here:
Service principles have been agreed between Bexley Council and MCCH after consultation with the Learning Disability Partnership Group and other stakeholders. These are contained in a Statement of Purpose, which you can read here:
For more information on the new contract with MCCH Society Ltd. please see the Bexley Learning Disability Newsletters which have been widely circulated:
Bexley Learning Disabilities Partnership Group
The Bexley Learning Disability Partnership Group brings together service users, carers, representatives from the Council and Health Service, service providers and others with a key interest in the development of mainstream and specialist services for people with learning disabilities in Bexley. The Partnership Group is charged, through the White Paper "Valuing People" (March 2001), with the interagency planning and commissioning of comprehensive, integrated and inclusive services that provide a genuine choice of service options to people with learning disabilties and their carers in the local community.
The Partnership Group has produced a range of planning frameworks and strategies as a guide to the further development of services. These documents can be accessed here:
Foundation for People with Learning Disabilities
Click here to access the  Foundation for People with Learning Disabilities website, where you can access information about the issues which affect the lives of people with learning disabilities and the work of the Foundation for People with Learning Disabilities.
 For help
with PDF format files.
Your opinion counts..!
The government wants to create an Office for Disability Issues - a new body to co-ordinate disabled people's interests. The government also wants to set up a National Forum for Organisations of Disabled People. Use the link below to find out more and for a chance to give your feedback. Thank you.
www.direct.gov.uk/disability-youropinion |
![[Charter Mark - awarded for excellence]](images/chartermark.gif "Awarded for excellence")