Care providers will soon be required to train staff on how to support residents with autism and learning disabilities. Daisy May Coster-Hollis, Senior Associate at law firm Browne Jacobson, specialising in health and care regulations, explains what this means.
Almost a decade after Oliver McGowan’s tragic death sparked a campaign by his mother Paula to improve autism and learning disability training for health and care staff, new standards are set to come into force.
The draft Oliver McGowan Code of Practice sets out training expectations for all Care Quality Commission (CQC)-registered services.
It was published in June by the Department of Health and Social Care in a consultation exercise ahead of its expected implementation on 6 September.
With few care homes, according to client feedback, currently delivering the newly expected standards of training to their staff, it’s crucial for registered managers to get up to speed on the new requirements.
Oliver McGowan’s story
Oliver, who had been diagnosed with a mild learning disability and autism as a child, was admitted to a children’s hospital following a “partial seizure” in October 2015.
He was prescribed medication usually given to patients with psychosis or a mental illness, which eventually led to his death in November 2016.
Paula’s campaign began shortly after as she believes doctors misunderstood his normal autistic behaviour when deciding on treatment.
Her argument that health and care staff should receive mandatory training on autism and learning disability eventually led to a new requirement for this under the Health and Care Act 2022.
The new code of practice takes this further by mandating the provisions for training content, delivery and ongoing evaluation to comply with the legislation.
What are the new standards for autism and learning disability training?
Within the code lies the Oliver McGowan Mandatory Training, which is the government’s preferred and recommended training for health and social care staff. Any provider deciding to depart from the code will need to provide a compelling justification to the CQC, in particular.
The updated framework introduces a three-tier model tailored to the level of interaction staff have with people with autism and learning disabilities. It takes a person-centred care approach, replacing older guidance that was more generic and less structured. The three tiers are:
- Tier 1 – General awareness: For all staff needing a basic understanding of learning disabilities and autism, including what these conditions are, their effects and how to make reasonable adjustments. Intended for those who may interact with affected individuals but do not provide direct care.
- Tier 2 – Direct support and care: For staff who provide care or support to people with a learning disability or autism. Covers more detailed knowledge, such as co-existing conditions, relevant laws, communication strategies and applying reasonable adjustments in practice. This involves face-to-face training co-produced and co-delivered with people with a learning disability or who are autistic.
- Tier 3 – Complex care and leadership: For professionals with significant autonomy who manage complex care or lead services. Builds on previous tiers, focusing on advanced knowledge in service development, clinical decision-making, and promoting best practice.
What this means for care homes
Using real-life case studies as examples for each tier, the code makes it clear that all care home staff are likely to need tier 2 capabilities, with tier 1 reserved for employees who aren’t public-facing. This is because the government wants to ensure care environments are accessible to all residents and visitors who are autistic or have a learning disability, or may be undiagnosed.
From our conversations with care home clients, delivery of tier 2 training is not industry practice. In complex care environments, specialist training is likely already being delivered but course content may require updating for compliance with tier 3 standards (even if just its terminology).
Anecdotally, we have already heard about the CQC referencing these draft standards during inspections and about shortages of available training programmes.
Therefore, it’s imperative that care providers act quickly to educate themselves on the new code, review their training policies and plan any required updates to training content, preferably before a potential surge in demand for external courses.
Image depicts Daisy May Coster-Hollis, Senior Associate at law firm Browne Jacobson