National Housing Strategy for People with a Disability 2011 - 2016

10.4 The data shows that the majority of adults with intellectual disabilities live in homesettings (49%), with significant numbers also living in community group homes (21%) andresidential settings (23%). In 2009, 330 people with an intellectual disability resided fulltime in mental health service facilities, either in psychiatric hospitals (277 individuals) or inmental health community residences (53 individuals).Transition from Institutional to Community Based Living10.5 Deinstitutionalisation refers to the move away from housing people with disabilities inresidential institutions, where all services were generally provided on site, to communitybasedsettings. Large residential institutions, while maximising the pooling of supportservices, segregate residents from the community and from normal social life. Research hasdemonstrated that such institutions are not able to deliver the same quality of life for theirresidents as community based alternatives 101 . Additional information in relation toresidential services for people with disabilities is contained in Appendix 10.10.6 Extensive international research, spanning over thirty years, consistently pointspredominantly towards a better quality of life for people with disabilities in communitysettings compared to living in institutional care. In 2009, the NDA published a review ofexisting research comparing dispersed and clustered community housing for disabled adultswhich found that “dispersed housing appears to be superior to clustered housing on themajority of quality indicators studied” 102 . It should be noted that the review alsodifferentiates between village communities 103 and other types of clustered settings andhighlights that the village communities model has some benefits for people with less severedisabilities 104 . The review concludes that although this model is an important part of serviceprovision, it is not one which can be feasibly provided for everyone.HSE Working Group on Congregated Settings10.7 A high level national steering group was established by the HSE in 2007 to developproposals to deliver community based, person-centred responses for people living incongregated settings. Membership of this group included the Department of Health,Inclusion Ireland, representatives of service providers, Disability Federation of Ireland andthe National Disability Authority.101Included in Society - Results and Recommendations of the European Research Initiative on Community-BasedResidential Alternatives for Disabled People, European Commission, 2003.102Mansell, J and Beadle-Brown, J, 2009, Dispersed or Clustered Housing for Disabled Adults: a systematic review.103This model involves carers/volunteers living and working along with residents with a disability.104In the physical well-being domain, clustered settings have been found to be superior in hours of recreationalactivity, contact with dentists, psychiatrists and psychologists, some health screening, some aspects of safety,contact with family and friends, visitors to the home and satisfaction with relationships. However, in many ofthese cases the better results refer only to village communities and not to campus housing or clusteredhousing. (Mansell, J and Beadle-Brown, J, 2009, Dispersed or Clustered Housing for Disabled Adults: asystematic review)125125