ORCID

Abstract

Background Studies have suggested that staff experience multiple obstacles to providing effective support around relationships and sexuality. The literature has suggested several potential solutions yet it is not clear what impedes the implementation of these. Understanding these barriers could improve care. Methods Two focus groups were carried out with a total of 13 participants recruited from the Southwest of England. Participants were recruited from client-facing roles across care providers, education provision, and social care provision. The focus groups were analysed using reflexive thematic analysis. Findings Four themes were drawn from the data. These were ‘Fear hinders care’, ‘Care is led by beliefs’, ‘People with intellectual disabilities are disempowered’, and ‘Opportunities are created by collaboration’. Participants suggested that care staff often rely on their beliefs to guide their care, but can be constrained by their fears of making wrong decisions. This can disempower people with intellectual disabilities. Conclusions Collaborating across services and with people with intellectual disabilities and their families could help support staff overcome fear and uncertainty. Helping staff explore their attitudes and values may enable greater awareness of the influence these have on care. Using these findings in designing training, policy and sex education may make them more effective.

Awarding Institution(s)

University of Plymouth

Supervisor

Deanna Gallichan

Keywords

intellectual disabilities, Learning Disabilities, Learning Disability, Relationships, Care, Support, Beliefs, Collaboration

Document Type

Thesis

Publication Date

2025

Embargo Period

2026-09-10

Deposit Date

September 2025

Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License

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