Families and Learning Disabilities
Last updated: December 9, 2008
Table of Contents
1. Introduction: where a parent has a learning disability
The term ‘learning disability’ does not describe a homogenous group.
Some people with ‘learning disabilities’ prefer to refer to themselves as having learning difficulties; other people have difficulties in learning but do not meet the core criteria for an individual to be described as ‘learning disabled’.
For the purposes of these procedures, ‘parental learning disability’ refers to adults who are or may become parents / carers for children and who meet the three core criteria that describe an individual as ‘learning disabled’:
- significant impairment of intellectual functioning: i.e. individuals with an IQ of 69 and below (reference: British Psychological Society and legal system) – this is not a hard and fast rule; overall IQ scores can be subject to interpretation either way for a variety of clinical reasons interpretations of psychometric test scores are the remit of a chartered psychologist
- significant impairment of adaptive/social functioning: i.e. how an individual copes with every-day demands of community living; impairment of adaptive/social functioning might be considered to be present if s/he needs assistance with survival (eating, drinking, clothing, hygiene and provision of basic comforts) or with social problem solving and social reasoning
- age of onset before adulthood: in order for an individual to be considered as ‘learning disabled’, impairment i.e. of intellectual adaptive/social functioning usually needs to have been present before the age of 18 years
