Frequently asked questions
Below are some answers to some frequently asked questions
What are learning disabilities?
The term learning disability refers to a wide range of conditions, with some people affected only moderately and some severely. People with learning disabilities are born with certain impairments that restrict or reduce their ability to learn as quickly or as readily as others.
Learning disability is a condition, not an illness, although in some cases an illness may be associated with the condition. Many people with learning disabilities are also affected by physical disabilities. Those affected moderately may require very little support in their lives, such as a few hours a week. Others may require as much as twenty four hour assistance.
In its Valuing People white paper, the Government defined learning disability as "A significant reduced ability to understand new or complex information, to learn new skills (impaired intelligence) with a reduced ability to cope independently (impaired social functioning) which started before adulthood with a lasting effect on development."
What does United Response do?
United Response is a national charity that works with adults with learning disabilities or mental health needs – including some of the most vulnerable people in our society. We provide everything from 24 hour care to a few hours of support a week. United Response is community based, working in many localities across England and in Wales.
Our support is always designed around each person because we know one size does not fit all. That’s why we have pioneered Person Centred Active Support, which is a way of supporting people with even the most profound disabilities to play an active role in all areas of their life - e.g. preparing meals, doing the shopping.
This is important as it is a shift in power moving people from being passive recipients of care to taking an active lead in their own lives. We offer a massive range of additional services, including support to help people find employment, consultancy to help businesses communicate in more accessible ways and various ways of helping people live in their own homes.
What makes United Response different from other learning disability or mental health charities?
What makes United Response different is its creative approach and willingness to invest in ways of improving the work we do – United Response is run on a non-profit basis.That’s why our local teams are supported by specialist national teams such as the inclusion team, ensuring that the organisation always adds value.
We were pioneers of care in the community in 1972 – long before it became a Government mantra - and continue to pioneer initiatives which help us achieve our goals. Current examples include our Every Vote Counts project – exploring ways to help people with learning disabilities participate in democracy – and telesupport, a way of improving care work through the use of tailored technology.
We work with the foremost thinkers and practitioners in social care (examples include Michael Smull, the Tizard Centre, Jim Mansell and Helen Sanderson Associates) to ensure we are at the forefront of service delivery. That’s why United Response is consistently acclaimed in the social care sector. In 2007 our Good To Great programme was highly commended at the Charity Awards while the Charity Times awards named us as one of the best six charity employers in the UK. We have previously won Charity Times and Charity Awards three times.
What kind of people does United Response support?
We support a huge number of people throughout England and Wales, regardless of age, race, sex, religion or nationality. At any one time we support more than 1,500 people. 80% of our services include people with complex needs, who require intensive support. 40% have no speech and many have additional impairments, including physical disability, sight loss or medical complications.
How was United Response established in the first place?
The story of United Response began when Su Sayer and Erwin Klinge met in 1972. Su was a science graduate working at ICI, while Erwin was a successful businessman who had established twelve international charities during the fifties and sixties. Inspired by Erwin’s energy, values and charitable commitment, Su became involved with his organisation and went on a life-changing mission to Brazil to work with disadvantaged people.
On Su’s return to England she met Susan Evershed, who had a son with learning disabilities. Mrs Evershed wanted passionately to help others with learning disabilities to live fuller lives. A widow, she had been left a house – the Old Rectory – in her husband’s will – and decided to donate half the value of the house to this cause.
At this time, more than 50,000 people with learning disabilities were isolated in long-term institutions (with a greater number still incarcerated with mental health problems) and Mrs Evershed passionately believed such people would thrive in more independent, less impersonal circumstances. She also knew that too many people with learning disabilities were geographically distant from their families, and believed the Old Rectory could provide a new home to enable local people with learning disabilities to remain close to their families. Susan Evershed believed Su Sayer had the passion and the determination to make this happen. Thus, in 1973, United Response was born.