'Why are we stuck in hospital?' Barriers to people with learning disabilities/autistic people leaving 'long-stay' hospital: a mixed methods study.

Background: Transforming care so that people with learning disabilities and/or autistic people can receive support at home rather than in hospital settings is a key priority, but progress has been slow. Despite significant national debate, little previous research has engaged directly with people in hospital, their families or front-line staff to understand the issues from their perspectives.

Objectives: This research seeks to better understand the experiences of people with learning disabilities and/or autistic people in long-stay hospital settings, their families and front-line staff - using this knowledge to create practice guides and training materials to support new understandings and ways of working.

'Why are we stuck in hospital?' Understanding delayed hospital discharges for people with learning disabilities and/or autistic people in long-stay hospitals in the UK.

Despite longstanding efforts at de-institutionalisation, around 2000 people with learning disabilities and/or autistic people in England currently live in hospital settings, amidst reports of protracted stays, limited progress towards living more ordinary lives and scandals of abuse and poor care. Yet, there is relatively little research on why people with learning disabilities and/or autistic people are delayed in hospitals, and what exists has significant limitations. In particular, previous studies have rarely talked directly to people with learning disabilities and/or autistic people, their families and frontline staff about their experiences of living or working in such settings, the barriers to discharge and what would help more people to lead chosen lifestyles.