SCLD has been a participant in The Public Perception of Adult Social care project, based at the University of Stirling. Led by Richard Brunner and Jen Wallace its focus is on how adult social care and support is understood and how communication shapes support for long-term change.  

At its heart, social care support is about helping people live well. It enables people to stay connected to family and friends, take part in everyday life, make their own choices and feel part of their community. Most of us will access social care at some point in our lives. It is an important right which we all enjoy and which promotes their well-being, dignity and independent living for many people with learning disabilities. 

However, political discussion and media depictions of social care support often focus on social care as a system in crisis.  One which is underfunded, in need of reform and facing challenges around recruitment, pay and retention. Whilst these issues should not be minimised, these narratives can obscure transformative role of social care support as an enabler of relationships, participation and belonging. 

People’s need for social care support and their experience of it are shaped by a range of circumstances. For people with learning disabilities, this includes their level of disability, age, living arrangements, access to transport and caring responsibilities.  However, too often people with learning disabilities and their families have to fight to access support or feel they have to justify receiving it. This can result in inequitable access, reinforce stigma and the idea of social care support as an individual problem rather than a collective responsibility. 

A shift in attitudes towards social care support as primarily a right we all share rather than as a drain on public resources within a struggling system, has the potential to change mindsets and political priorities. For people with learning disabilities, access to fair and equitable social care support is the bedrock for a fulfilling life with dignity, choice and control. 

SCLD will be using the resources and our learning from the project to explore opportunities to positively reframe social care support in Scotland.