Communication - Interventions

An essential training pack in helping ensure that there is a competent workforce that has the capabilities to provide effective, ethical and high quality support to people whose behaviour is described as challenging.

Key features: Written by experts in partnership with the Estia Centre; flexible modular training materials; full materials to support the delivery of the course.

About the resource: People with learning disabilities and challenging behaviour are one of the most vulnerable groups of individuals in our society. They risk exclusion from services, being denied opportunities and being placed away from their local communities and families. Furthermore, they are vulnerable to poor practice and abuse.

This user friendly and accessible resource emphasises the importance of respecting people using services, their families and carers. It aims to support those working in services, to empower service users and to improve the quality of care. The authors developed this material with every effort to adhere to the Charter that has been developed by the Challenging Behaviour National Strategy Group.

The approach is based on positive behavioural support, offering person-centred support, individualised interventions that are clearly based on a functional assessment, understanding the person’s needs and the environment in which they live. Key to this training resource has been the inclusion of the perspectives from families and people with learning disabilities.

Modules are included that address assessment and a range of interventions, such as communication, reactive strategies, active support and skills teaching. In addition to good practice, other important issues such as autism and legal frameworks are included.

Contents include:

· Values, principles, definitions and approaches

· Understanding and assessing challenging behaviour

· Interventions: – The environment

· Interventions – Communication

· Interventions – Focused support strategies

· Interventions – Reactive strategies

· Interventions – Cognitive approaches

· Developing skills

· Use of medication

· Supporting yourself and your team

· Autism and challenging behaviour

· What do people with learning disabilities think about challenging behaviour

· Legal aspects

· Working with families

· Active support

· Mental health problems

· Challenging behaviour and offending