Learning Disability Workforce

To ensure people with a learning disability have access to the health and social care they need, it’s vital to have the right people in the right roles. There is a huge range of roles across health and social care specialising in working with people with learning disabilities. Our learning disability careers website aims to provide career information to inspire and encourage people to join the learning disability workforce across health and care.

Learning disability nurses work to provide specialist healthcare and support to people with a learning disability, as well as their families and staff teams, to help them live a fulfilling life. 

HEE has been working in partnership with other organisations to create the All-England Plan for Learning Disability Nurses. This is an easy-read version. The plan outlines our commitment to making sure we have enough learning disability nurses in the future and details how the NHS plans to improve the quality of care for people with a learning disability and autistic people.

National Learning Disability Nursing Forum website

The National Learning Disability Nursing Forum website also provides a central hub to support learning disability nursing, showcasing your expertise and valuing the contribution you make in so many ways across a diverse range of settings. Ruth May, Chief Nursing Officer for England describes says the hub aims to help strengthen the profile of the profession and build professional networks, whilst promoting learning disability nursing as a really rewarding career option.

Career information

In addition to learning disability careers website, the Health Careers provides useful career information resources to help career seekers choose a career in learning disability nursing.

Children and young people’s workforce

The Children and Young People Transforming Care Workforce Report and Recommendations – to understand what staff need to know to support children and young people with a learning disability, autistic people or both. The report includes:

- A skills matrix setting out the range and level of skills required in services, and including case studies showing how it can be used.

- Recommendations for next steps in developing the workforce for children and young people with learning disability, autistic people or both.

Allied Health Professionals (AHPs) are the third largest workforce in the NHS and are professional roles that form part of teams delivering learning disability and autism services. AHPs provide system-wide care to assess, treat, diagnose and discharge patients across social care, housing, education, and independent and voluntary sectors. 

By adopting a holistic approach to healthcare, AHPs can help manage patients’ care throughout the life course from birth to palliative care. Their focus is on the prevention and improvement of health and wellbeing to maximise the potential for individuals to live full and active lives. You can find out more about professional roles on the HEE AHP webpage.

AHPs in Learning Disability Settings

This infographic resource demonstrates to employers and workforce planners how AHPs, which are the third-largest workforce in the NHS, can make a unique contribution to learning disability services. It also explains how AHPs can be deployed into learning disability settings to optimise and maintain a person’s mental and physical health, function, and quality of life. They also address and challenge health and social inequalities faced by people with a learning disability.

The infographic, co-designed with the AHP Mental Health and Learning Disability Observatory, shows how patients, service users and families can benefit from the holistic AHP support for their health and care needs.

If you require the infographic in an alternative format, visit the AHPs offer in learning disability settings explained webpage.

Transforming Care Programme: Scoping the contribution of AHPs to the delivery of New Models of Care

Th study aimed to scope and explore the contribution of AHPs to the delivery of new models of care within learning disabilities, autism or both services. The report was commissioned by HEE and links to the Transforming Care Programme of work. The study findings can be reviewed in the published Scoping Report.

Transforming Care Partnership workforce planning guidance

Helps to develop a workforce plan for local service model. It offers ideas and suggestions about how to write the plan and make it happen. Download the Transforming Care Partnership workforce planning guidance report, this is also available in an accessible format.

Capacity modelling tool 

To help determine the number of staff needed in learning disability services. There are two versions of the tool:

- Community learning disability services multiplier for staffing needed in Community Learning Disability Teams, Intensive Support Teams and Crisis Intervention Teams.

- Social care calculator for staffing within a locality based on the level of care that people requiring care packages will need.

Value of Replacement Care Delivered by Carers of Adults with Learning Disabilities

To help show the cost of care and support given to adults with a learning disability by unpaid carers. Unpaid carers are peoples relatives, neighbours or friends.

Use the resources, Value of Replacement Care Delivered by Carers of Adults with Learning Disabilities Report and Data Analysis and Methodology, National Data by Local Authority and Carer Data Calculator to show the cost of unpaid care in your area.

Everyone should know the true value of unpaid care and invest in this workforce group. To find out more read Valuing Carers Report by Carers UK. 

Generic staff roles

Generic role templates – to design new and different roles in learning disability community teams and services. They contain the core skills needed; the relevant competences can be chosen based on the type of role that is being designed. Visit the Learning Disability useful resources page.

An accompanying user guide provides further information

Transition support roles

Transition role templates – to design new roles working with young people in transition from children’s services to adult services.

Safe staffing

NHS Improvement guidance on safe staffing in learning disability and autism services 

Finding and retaining staff to support people with a learning disability and autistic people

Shows individual and organisational factors effecting recruitment and retention of staff. There are two resources:

- Recruiting and retaining staff to support people with learning disabilities, autistic people or both – a detailed guidance, including examples of best practice. This is also available in an accessible format.

- Finding and keeping staff to support people with learning disabilities, autistic people or both – a digital booklet about different ways to find and keep good staff.

Values-based recruitment

Values-based recruitment is about attracting and recruiting trainees and staff whose values and behaviours support the values of the NHS Constitution, alongside assessment of their aptitude and skills. Also visit Health Careers.

Flexible routes to recruitment

HEE is supporting new and more flexible routes to become part of the healthcare workforce, including apprenticeships, associates or assistant practitioners, part-time training and flexible working roles.