Mel and George O'Neil share evidence that the use of Makaton, which gives people the power to communicate and exercise freedom, is being neglected in adult life.
Authors: Mel O'Neil and George O'Neil
Makaton is an important communication system for many people with learning disabilities or communication problems. It has a significant track record in helping people communicate and this is a fundamental requirement of human rights and the right to personal freedom. It is therefore of great concern that positive work in schools appears to be too often abandoned as people enter adult life.
This report suggests that there is a fundamental failure in adult social care to support people who use Makaton to use and extend their skills in adult life. This is despite the positive opportunities created by technologies such as MyChoicePad which make using Makaton even easier to use. The authors argue persuasively that advocates of Makaton and Speech and Language Therapy must collaborate to ensure that the right to communicate is not undermined by cuts in funding or bad practice.
Read and download the free pdf in your browser here.
The publisher is the Centre for Welfare Reform.
Making Freedom Real © Mel O'Neil and George O'Neil 2016.
All Rights Reserved. No part of this paper may be reproduced in any form without permission from the publisher except for the quotation of brief passages in reviews.
education, intellectual disabilities, social care, Paper
