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Circles of Support
A number of people supported by Stewarts Care featured in a project, ‘Building Circles of Support’ project, led by Prof. Mary McCarron at the Trinity Centre for Ageing and Intellectual Disability (TCAID) at Trinity College Dublin.
The project aimed to demonstrate positive examples of good practice in Circles of Support through living case included stories and experiences from Martin, Patrick, Joe, Audrey, Una and Theresa, their families and the people who support them in Stewarts Care.
“‘Circles of Support’ refers to the layers of support made by the people you know”
Explains Dr. Darren McCausland, Programme Manager, Stewarts Care and Senior Research Fellow, Trinity College Dublin.
“A Circles of Support model describes how people receive support from different types of relationships – through Circles of Intimacy, Friendship, Participation, and Exchange. The Intellectual Disability Supplement to the Irish Longitudinal Study on Ageing (IDS-TILDA) and other research has identified how, in this model, the Circles of Friendship and Participation of individuals with intellectual disability are sometimes lacking, placing a heavy reliance on close family and paid supports”.
The project aimed to demonstrate positive examples of good practice in Circles of Support through the lived experiences of Martin, Patrick, Joe, Audrey, Una and Theresa, their families and the people who support them in Stewarts Care and to develop resources to enhance the Circles of Support for adults with intellectual disabilities that can be used in person-centred planning processes”.
The participants stories, captured in video and developed into an accompanying booklet, provide guidance and inspiration to individuals and their families who may wish to grow their own Circles of Support. The resources also show how Services can further develop the Circles of Support of the people they support.
The aims and outcomes of the Building Circles of Support project align with Stewarts Care strategic aim of providing an enriched lived experience for individuals through enhancing person-centred supports and supporting connection with their community.
The project was funded by the Health Research Board’s Knowledge Translation Award, which aims to translate research findings into actions to improve policy and service provision.
Discover the full suite of videos on the Stewarts Care YouTube channel or learn more about the project, TCAID and access further resources on Building Circles of Support for people with Intellectual Disabilities - Trinity Centre for Ageing and Intellectual Disability - Trinity College Dublin (tcd.ie)
Watch the first video in the series below or go to the Stewarts Care YouTube channel to discover all 8 videos. Click here to go to the Stewarts Care YouTube channel.
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