The latest findings from the Office for National Statistics which highlight the impact of COVID-19 on the wellbeing of people with a disability, with over a third (35%) of disabled adults reporting spending too much time alone compared to 19.9% of non-disabled adults.
Furthermore, almost 1 in 10 adults with a disability reported often or always feeling lonely in the last seven days, compared with less than 1 in 20 non-disabled adults.
The findings also showed that almost half (45%) of disabled adults said they are very worried about the effect that COVID-19 is having on their life compared with around a third (30%) of non-disabled adults, and nearly two-thirds (65%) reported that concerns around COVID-19 are affecting their well-being.
Edel Harris, CEO of the
learning disability
A learning disability is to do with the way someone's brain works. It makes it harder for someone to learn, understand or do things.
charity Mencap, said:
"People with a learning disability already face extreme levels of social isolation and loneliness – they are seven times more likely to feel lonely than the general population – and the coronavirus crisis is only exacerbating this. It is shocking to see that over a third of disabled people are spending too much time alone during lockdown, we know that for people with a learning disability this picture is likely to be even worse. The closure of day services
Day services are things some people with a learning disability do in the day, usually as part of a group. For example: drama or craft. , loss of routine, difficulties staying in touch with family and keeping active means that they are struggling to cope, and we know from our work that it’s having a negative impact on their wellbeing, health and mental health.
“At Mencap we are trying hard to fill that gap. We have boosted capacity on our helpline, created an easy-read information and advice hub on our website
A website is a page you can go to on the internet like Google or YouTube. and launched Mencap TV, an online TV channel with instructional and fun videos for people to watch and follow along at home. Our extraordinary support workers are working extremely hard in challenging circumstances to create a sense of normality and community
A community is the people and places in an area. - holding discos in living rooms and building shops in garden shed. They are the only contact some people have.
"But only a small proportion of the 1.5 million people with a learning disability in the UK receive social care
Social care means the services that give care and support to people who need it. support and there is a real risk that more people might slip though the net with tragic consequences as the Care Act easements come into force. The Government
The Government are the people who run the country. The Government decide how much tax people should pay and how things like the National Health Service (NHS) should work. must make sure that the emergency funding that is so desperately needed gets to frontline support services so that everyone, including people with a learning disability, can get the support they need to stay safe and well during this crisis.”
Read more about the ONS figures here.
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For further information contact Mencap’s media team on media@mencap.org.uk or 020 7696 5414 (including out of hours).
For advice and information on learning disability, including advice on coronavirus and accessing support services in your local area, please contact Mencap’s freephone Learning Disability Helpline on 0808 808 1111 (9am-3pm, Monday-Friday) or email helpline@mencap.org.uk.
Or visit Mencap’s Mencap’s website to access easy read information about coronavirus and further info and advice: www.mencap.org.uk.
Notes to editors
About Mencap
There is approximately 1.5 million people with a learning disability in the UK. Mencap works to support people with a learning disability, their families and carers by fighting to change laws, improve services and access to
education
Education is when you learn things. When you fill in a form to get a job, education means you write where you went to school, college or university.
,
employment
Employment means having a job.
and
leisure
Leisure is when you have time to do things you enjoy like playing sports or going to the pub.
facilities.
Mencap supports thousands of people with a learning disability to live their lives the way they want and also campaigns to change laws, improve services and challenge negative attitudes towards people with a learning disability.
What is a learning disability?
- A learning disability is a reduced intellectual ability which can cause problems with everyday tasks – for example shopping and cooking, or travelling to new places – which affects someone for their whole life;
- Learning disability is not a mental illness or a learning difficulty, such as
dyslexia
Dyslexia is a learning difficulty. People who have dyslexia can find it hard to read, write and spell.
. Very often the term ‘learning difficulty’ is wrongly used interchangeably with ‘learning disability’; - People with a learning disability can take longer to learn new things and may need support to develop new skills, understand difficult information and engage with other people. The level of support someone needs is different with every individual. For example, someone with a severe learning disability might need much more support with daily tasks than someone with a mild learning disability.