Planning ahead: meeting the needs of older people with intellectual disabilities in the United Kingdom

Despite the acknowledged increase in the number of older people with intellectual disabilities (ID) in the UK, the age-related health and social care needs of this population have yet to be fully understood and addressed. Although there is some evidence of positive development, the current picture of service provision is characterized by fragmentation and limited choice of resources and specialist care. Policy aims are variably met and inconsistently applied. Research suggests that service planning is often incoherent, that many older people with ID and their carers receive poor quality non-specialist care and that staff are inadequately trained to manage the often multiple and complex needs of this user group. There is a considerable co-joined service development and research challenge in this emerging field. If older people with ID and their carers are to receive quality provision, a coherent and well-funded service planning system is required which is underpinned by articulated agency partnerships, informed by good practice developments in the fields of ID, gerontology and dementia care, and linked to evidence about effective models of care and services. The incorporation of the perspectives of users and carers in the planning process is an essential pre-requisite as is a commitment to the development of effective support across the life course of all individuals with ID.