5. Discussion

Discussion

Through our conversations with young people and their carers alongside our work defining sector perspectives, six themes were identified as key influences on the experiences of young people with intellectual disability.

These themes represent a mix of systems, behaviours and drivers that collectively shape the make-up and quality of life of a young person with intellectual disability.

A description of each theme is included below. The following sections provide an outline of key observations, insights and priority actions across the themes.

Rich and diverse aspirations:

Young people with intellectual disability have rich, interesting and varied aspirations for the future. Supporting young people to realise these aspirations is an enduring goal for carers and families and needs to be a central focus of the service system.

A robust disability service system:

Ready access to appropriate and high-quality support services is critical to helping young people thrive and pursue their hopes and aspirations. Service option is now a reality for many due to the NDIS, but there are still real constraints on service choice for those requiring highly specialised supports.

A meaningful life of education, work and community participation:

Meaningful experiences of education, work and community participation provide young people with the best chance to pursue and realise their aspirations. For some young people, access to these experiences is already a reality, but for many others current experiences fall well short of the ideal. Addressing current challenges and gaps must be a key priority across the system.

Healthy living:

Having good physical and mental health is critical to supporting high quality of life. Given young people with intellectual disability often have multiple and complex health requirements, there needs to be a focus on supporting access to services that can provide healthcare which holistically addresses young people’s needs.

Plans for a secure and stable future:

Secure and stable housing represents a critical aspiration and goal for many young people and carers as it is a real marker of independence. But despite advances in disability accommodation, there is still a pressing need to focus efforts to boost the provision of appropriate and varied accommodation supports for young people with intellectual disability.

Positive community attitudes:

Above all, accepting intellectual disability in society is fundamental to improving outcomes for young people with intellectual disability. Through our work, negative community attitudes were frequently identified as a root cause of inequities and poor outcomes. A sustained focus on community attitudes to shift the paradigm for young people and open a new world of opportunities is required.