A Social Report for Ireland Volume II - the NESC Website

276People with disabilities may have fewer options to live independently than nondisabledpeople given care requirements in relation to their disability, their lowereducation, employment rates and income levels, the high cost of housing andwaiting lists for suitable local authority housing. The insufficiency of care supportsand options may also make it more difficult for people with disabilities to leave theparental home. People’s care requirements can also influence the nature of theirrelationships and determine their ability to form relationships outside the parentalhome. The NDA (2005a: 76) has reported that people with learning difficulties andthose who have difficulty in dressing or leaving home alone are least likely to moveout of the parental home before the age of forty.Living in Communal EstablishmentsThe second indicator under the living arrangements component of the relationshipsand care domain is the percentage of people living in communal establishments, seeFigure 9.24. While the majority of people with disabilities live in private households(90 per cent) a substantial minority (10 per cent) live in communal establishments.People with disabilities are more likely than the general population to live incommunal establishments: 10 per cent compared to 2.5 per cent. There has beena slight decline in the proportion of people with disabilities living in communalestablishments between 2002 and 2006, from 11 to 10 per cent. This decline isreflected across age groups except for those aged 65 and over. The likelihood ofliving in a communal establishment increases with age: only 1 per cent of childrenaged 14 and under with a disability live in a communal establishment, 5 to 6 percent of 15-64 year olds do so, and this increases to 19 per cent of the over 65s. Some82 per cent of people with disabilities living in a communal establishment livein a hospital, nursing home or children’s home. The available evidence highlightsthe desire of people with disabilities to live independently, where possible. Thedata indicate a move in this direction, but a requirement is the provision ofadequate supports.Figure 9.24 Percentage of Disabled People Living in CommunalEstablishments, 2002 and 2006%252015105032.5AllHouseholds11.4 10.16.84.71.9 1.2Householdsof PeoplewithDisabilities6.8 5.96.6 6.018.6 19.10-14 15-24 25-44 45-64 65+Age20022006Source Census 2002 and 2006