Member's statement: Support for Adults with Learning Difficulties: Sensability Lisburn
Member's statement by Mrs Michelle Guy on .
- MLA
- Mrs Michelle Guy
- Party at the time
- Alliance Party
- Date
- 20 October 2026
- Type
- Member's statement
- Business
- Members' Statements
- Heading
- Support for Adults with Learning Difficulties: Sensability Lisburn
- Assembly identifier
- Official Report component 5798337
Read the official Assembly record
Text
Last Saturday morning was time well spent for me. I joined parents and carers at a wellness and information session organised by Sensability, which is a Lisburn-based group that supports adults with severe learning difficulties. A number of things struck me about the event. The first was how much care and understanding had gone into creating an event that genuinely met the needs of families. Karen and Vivien, who lead Sensability, are parents of young people with complex needs. They understand what families need, which is support, advice, time to breathe and the opportunity to connect with people who truly understand their lives. For the young people in attendance, the session was a chance to have fun, spend time with friends and be themselves, while surrounded by carers who see them as the unique individuals they are. Alma from Caleb's Cause was also there, listening to parents and sharing vital information about navigating the transition to adulthood. She gave families a two-page checklist of things that they need to know and plan for. For many, much of that information was brand new, and that fact really stayed with me. The checklist was extensive and, frankly, intimidating, but it was also frustratingly familiar. Once again, parents were filling gaps in a system that should provide clear and accessible information and support. Those families already carry a huge amount; they should not have to rely on another parent who is fighting their way through the system to tell them what help exists, what they are entitled to and what they need to do next. One simple request that I heard was for a one-stop shop for trusted and reliable information — somewhere that families could go and know that they would get the right information at the right time. The Caleb's Cause website or a Saturday morning information session is not where families should have to find out what support is available for them or what they should have to coordinate on behalf of their family member in the absence of coherent care plans in Northern Ireland. We need our public services to join the dots, provide that information clearly and make sure that families are supported through every stage of their child's life. Parents such as those whom I met on Saturday should not have to plug the gaps in the system. They deserve a system that is joined up and that works for them. Again, I thank the incredible teams at Sensability, Live Life Well-Being Centre and Caleb's Cause for the genuinely inspiring and impactful work that they do.
429 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.
Assessment
Awaiting analysis
This record has not been analysed yet. It is not counted in any total until it has been assessed.
Disagree with this assessment?
Classifications can be challenged. A person reviews every challenge, and any change is recorded publicly above with its reason.