Clwyd West MS Darren Millar is encouraging people to take part in an important new study into how coronavirus is affecting the lives of people with a learning disability in Wales.

Researchers from the University of South Wales and Cardiff University will be carrying out the study, which begins in mid-November, with help from Learning Disability Wales, the All Wales Forum of Parents and Carers and All Wales People First, to find out how the lives of people with learning disabilities have changed during the pandemic.

The results will be shared with policy makers, services and people themselves regularly during the year.

You can take part in the survey if: you are a person with a learning disability; you are a parent or unpaid carer of a person with a learning disability; you are a paid support worker supporting a person with a learning disability or you work for an organisation that knows people who might want to share their stories.

Darren said:

“The researchers want to interview 200 people with a learning disability in Wales. Some adults with learning disabilities may not be able to talk to researchers so they want to speak to 100 family carers or paid support staff who could tell researchers about what has happened to those people too.

“The researchers will interview people three times during the year over the phone and questions will be about their wellbeing, health, social life, their services, the issues that are worrying them and how coronavirus has affected their lives.

“This is vital research and I therefore encourage all those who can help to sign up.”

If you are interested in taking part please sign up by completing the short Expression of Interest Form here.

By providing your contact details, you are only saying you are interested in finding out more about the research study. It does not mean that you are agreeing to take part in it.

The easy read briefing sheet on the study can be found here.