We have gone beyond "could do better". If you doubt that we are living within a system collapsing into chaos, then read these reports.
My concern is for adults and the system of adult social care in England. So it might seem odd that I begin with a report on teenagers: "The wellbeing of secondary school pupils with special educational needs". In a moment I will focus on the report but first the report's title and a question. What happens to children with special educational needs when they leave school? Do they become 'adults with special educational needs'? Of course not. Almost no-one talks about the educational needs of adults with disabilities. There's no money in it, is there? What we have instead is 'care' - adults receive social care, or have social care needs, if you must. We can argue about the term 'SEN' or even the concept of 'needs' but that is not my point here. My point is that we have a dominant structure of thought, and therefore provision: 'special educational needs' for school children and 'care' for adults. And when it comes to adulthood, we cannot seem to organise our services in any other way than 'care'. I make the point so that when you click on the links and read these reports, you will bear in mind that fundamentally the problem is not money; it's not merely about 'austerity' or 'the cuts'. Throwing money at 'care' will not answer the fundamental problem, one we have barely started to address, the right of adults with disabilities to live as active citizens, in the community.
"The wellbeing of secondary school pupils with special educational needs" by Matt Barnes and Eric Harrison of the Department of Sociology, City University of London. This disturbing report (Yes - we should be disturbed by it) concludes that children with SEN "tend to have lower levels of subjective wellbeing (i.e. happiness) than children without SEN when talking about their school and their school work – and also with their friends (an important element of school life)" and that "The link between SEN and wellbeing appears to be even stronger for psychological wellbeing (i.e. mental health). Children with SEN score higher than children without SEN across a range of psychological wellbeing domains."
My question, given my declared interest here, is if this is so for teenagers what then about adults? What about the wellbeing of adults, of these children when they journey through adulthood? Does the same dismal conclusion about their well-being, their happiness and mental health, apply? Are they more unhappy, with greater mental ill-health problems? Who knows? Who cares?
A report that goes some way towards tackling those questions is "Being Disabled in Britain: a journey less equal" from the Equality and Human Rights Commission (April 2017). It is a challenging read, and not just because it is a long and thorough report:
"It is a badge of shame on our society that millions of disabled people in Britain are still not being treated as equal citizens and continue to be denied the everyday rights non-disabled people take for granted, such as being able to access transport, appropriate health services and housing, or benefit from education and employment. The disability pay gap is persistent and widening, access to justice has deteriorated, and welfare reforms have significantly affected the already low living standards of disabled people. It is essential that as a society we recognise and address these structural problems urgently and comprehensively." Executive Summary: "Being Disabled in Britain: a journey less equal"
In six key areas, the report discloses the deep and structural inequalities for disabled adults: Education; Work; Standard of Living; Health and Care; Justice and detention; participation and identity - in short, living as an adult, as an active citizen. These deep-seated inequalities are compounded by (perhaps caused by) ignorance: the evidence or data that should inform public policy is simply not there, either generally or specifically:
"More needs to be done to improve the evidence base on the issues facing disabled people. In particular, better evidence is needed about the experiences and outcomes of disabled people who have specific impairments or multiple disabilities, and to understand the issues for disabled people of different ethnic groups, ages or sexual orientations." (My emphasis). Executive Summary: "Being Disabled in Britain: a journey less equal.
In "Back to Bedlam" (Centre for Welfare Reform. July 2017) Robin Jackson asks "What kind of future faces people with a learning disability?". His conclusion is not a pretty one.
What emerges is a country in which successive governments have exhibited scant concern for those in our society who, for whatever reason, find difficulty in fending for themselves. Amongst this growing population are people with a learning disability and their families.
These are different voices from different perspectives and political (and apolitical) positions - but the general thrust is clear. My own personal experience confirms a structure of provision that has wholly lost sight of what its fundamental purpose is and the tidal wave of chaos that is adult social care in England threatens to overwhelm us.