The Scottish Human Rights Commission (SHRC) report finds troubling failures in progress from institutionalisation to independent living.

The Scottish Human Rights Commission (SHRC) has published their “Tick Tock…! report assessing the progress from institutionalisation to independent living in Scotland. In the report, the SHRC examined and measured the progress of Coming Home Implementation Plan in detail through the lens of human rights standards.

Whilst large institutions have closed, groups of people deemed to complex to live independently remain stuck in hospitals when there is no need for medical care, or in placements too far from home. The evidence shows that, despite commitments, the target to “greatly reduce” the numbers of people affected by March 2024 has not been met.

SHRC found it troubling that little progress has been made and clear failures to uphold human rights continue. There are many significant and concerning gaps in the progress of the Coming Home Implementation Plan which falls short of United Nations (UN) Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD) guidance and, in some areas, indicates a failure to comply with basic requirements. This means that the situation currently faced by people with learning disabilities and/or who are autistic affected by that Plan fails to comply with the right to independent living.

People continue to be admitted to hospital for reason of “learning disability” which raises additional questions about compliance with the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR). The ECHR does not permit detention on the basis of learning disability unless there is a clear therapeutic purpose.

£20 million of funding was made available by the Scottish Government for Health and Social Care Partnerships in 2021 which was meant to be used over a three year period (2021-2024). Analysis of the public information in May 2024, tracked £14 million of that fund, of which the vast majority – £12,634,881 – was unspent going into the final year of funding. There is no clarity on what funding will be used for after the Plan ends.

Information on the use of funds was difficult to source, demonstrating a lack of transparency and accountability both towards disabled people and in the use of public funds. Of the money that can be identified, the SHRC are particularly concerned about examples of spending which should have been allocated directly to independent living which was instead used to refurbish and repurpose institutional settings. This would be in direct contravention of the requirements of the right to independent living.

There are also hidden populations significantly affected by institutionalisation. People housed in forensic learning disability services also spend many years in hospital, however they were not included in the Coming Home Implementation Plan. Autistic people are also hard to find in available data, much of which only specifies people with learning disabilities.

The SHRC argue that commitments to a human rights based approach have not been used in a meaningful way to make sure this work delivers for people with learning disabilities and/or who are autistic.

Minister for Social Care, Mental Wellbeing and Sport, Maree Todd said that she would carefully consider the findings and recommendations of the report:

“I want to put on record my commitment to delivering the changes that are evidently required for people with learning disabilities,” she said.

“Coming Home is a priority for this government, this is why we have provided additional support and investment to health and social care partnerships to deliver improvements”.

However, the Scottish government has yet to provide a clear plan after the expiry of the Coming Home Implementation Plan on 31 March 2024.

Chair of the SHRC, Professor Angela O’Hagan stated that “action, not rhetoric, was needed at a national level”.

It is clear that legislative intervention in Scotland is required to protect the right to independent living in Scots Law, to reform frameworks which permit the detention of people with learning disabilities and/or who are autistic, and to provide independent oversight of the individual situations of those remaining in inappropriate placements.

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