Self-building safe havens in a post-service landscape: how adults with learning disabilities are reclaiming the welcoming communities agenda

Abstract

Personalisation in adult social care, allied with more ‘austere’ funding of social services, is leading to a sharp decline in day care services. Support is becoming less placement-driven and instead woven into everyday spaces within the community. Consequently, support is being re-framed from ‘care’ in formal settings towards a broader effort at enabling meaningful lives nested in local neighbourhoods and ordinary spaces. This article explores what it means to live in a ‘welcoming community’ within the context of declining social care services from the perspective of adults with learning disabilities. It draws on empirical data collected from focus groups and photo diaries with adults with learning disabilities on their experiences of negotiating a life in the community. We identify a process of ‘self-building’ safe havens in ordinary British spaces, including allotments, marinas and ‘fish and chip shops’, and argue that adults with learning disabilities are reclaiming the welcoming communities agenda.