Positive behaviour support training: developing skills in community services
Intended for healthcare professionals
Evidence & practice    

Positive behaviour support training: developing skills in community services

Dr Ruth Richards Consultant clinical psychologist, Harplands Hospital, North Staffordshire Combined Healthcare NHS Trust, Newcastle-under-Lyme, England
Jacquie Shenton Consultant learning disability nurse, Lancashire and South Cumbria NHS Foundation Trust, Preston, England
Felicity Watkin Trainee clinical psychologist, Harplands Hospital, North Staffordshire Combined Healthcare NHS Trust, Newcastle-under-Lyme, England
Shaun Crank Assistant psychologist, Intensive support team, Harplands Hospital, North Staffordshire Combined Healthcare NHS Trust, Newcastle-under-Lyme, England

Positive behaviour support (PBS) is considered an effective and ethical approach to supporting people with learning disabilities who are at risk of behaviour that challenges. Many people with learning disabilities are supported in the community by staff with varying levels of PBS skills and practice, and training is important to ensure PBS is used consistently. In 2019, a community learning disability team in Staffordshire, England, developed a PBS skills training programme and delivered it to 57 senior staff from 16 local community services. In an evaluation of the training programme, participants reported some improvements in their PBS knowledge and practice, as well as some benefits for service users, after the training. However, no follow-up data could be obtained from participants six months after the training. This article describes the training programme, reports the findings of its evaluation and discusses how the findings will inform a future PBS skills development project.

Learning Disability Practice. 24, 6, 14-21. doi: 10.7748/ldp.2021.e2148

Correspondence

ruth.richards@combined.nhs.uk

Peer review

This article has been subject to external double-blind peer review and has been checked for plagiarism using automated software

Conflict of interest

None declared

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