Measurement of community participation and use of leisure by service users with intellectual disabilities: the Guernsey Community Participation and Leisure Assessment (GCPLA)

Community integration is now an important principle guiding service provision for people with intellectual disabilities. However, it has been argued that research has contributed little in the way of guidance and that this is mainly because of the lack of appropriate measures. The Guernsey Community Participation and Leisure Assessment (GCPLA) is described in the present paper. The GCPLA is a comprehensive assessment of community participation and the use of leisure that produces both quantitative and qualitative data. Data are presented which suggest that the instrument is potentially both valid and reliable. A study comparing use of their community by service users and a staff control group showed that the service users had a smaller range of activities, were less busy (i.e. took part in fewer frequent activities), and were more likely to access their communities in the presence of staff or carers, rather than alone or with friends. Suggestions for the use of the GCPLA are discussed including individual planning, service evaluation and training.