Lone parent carers of people with intellectual disabilities in the Republic of Ireland

Accessible summary • In Europe many children are living in lone parent households. These families often require extra support. • This study used information from a national database of people with intellectual disabilities for the years 1996, 2001 and 2006. • We found that there are now many more lone parents, particularly for children and young people under 20 years of age, who have intellectual disabilities. This rise is also found amongst parents whose children do not have intellectual disabilities. • People with intellectual disabilities are still less likely to have a lone parent than people who do not have intellectual disabilities. • More research should be done on the needs of lone parents. Summary The National Intellectual Disability Database that operates in the Republic of Ireland is unique in Europe and provides an opportunity to examine trends over time for a total population in excess of 25 000 people with intellectual disabilities and their care arrangements. This paper describes the changes over a 10-year period in the proportion of children and adults living with lone parent carers and comparisons are drawn with demographic changes as reflected in the national census of 2001 and 2006. Since 1996, the proportion of children and young people under 20 years of age with intellectual disabilities living with lone parents has doubled: in 2006 nearly one-in-five were in lone parent households. These figures are lower than for the general population although they reflect similar demographic trends. The increase in lone parenting is more marked amongst people who have mild rather than moderate to profound intellectual disabilities and for those families living outside the Greater Dublin area. The implications for providing equitable and supportive family-centred services to this population of parent carers are discussed.