Cameras: Supported living has lots of positives and... - Mencap

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Cameras

Ronca profile image
8 Replies

Supported living has lots of positives and some negatives. Are there any family members who have installed surveillance cameras, how did they go about it. I am thinking of them as a deterrent but know this isn't fail proof.

This would be in a 2-1 setting.

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Ronca profile image
Ronca
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8 Replies
Jofisher profile image
Jofisher

I would like to do this myself but not sure how to go about it to be honest either. It’s horrible that we are even thinking this is necessary but sadly in some cases it is.

Rupertthebear profile image
Rupertthebear in reply to Jofisher

Hi JoFisher,What is supported residential accommodation like? I am thinking of it for my elder son ? How big is it and can we stay with him sometimes? Is it exclusive to him or is it like a house share? How much control would he get?

LDAutie profile image
LDAutie

hi Ronca and Jofisher

in my second to last residential home,where myself and a couple of other people were 2-1,filming was not allowed.

i had a video camcorder thing i used a lot,i wasnt even allowed to take photos of any other service users who were seen as having limited mental capacity-ill give an example,a fellow resident who i liked came with me to horse riding therapy in our transport once and although he was to scared to try out riding in the end, he wanted to try my riding skull helmet on him(skull helmets are what jockeys wear,with a silk cover over the top),and have a photo taken so he coud show people,even though we were friends and he said he wanted it taken and agreed to it,i was told to delete it as he didnt have the capacity-he was actualy upset that he coudnt show off how proud he was.

another example, i was also told i cant pick up staffs voice or picture on camera (and the same goes for the facility im in now-a supported living facility where i have my own little place and 1-1 staffing with me at all times), i think they have to give formal permission of some sort, however you do get staff who agree to being filmed no problem-you woud come across some staff who woud be insulted to be photographed though.

i recently tried to set up a camera to watch my cat when im out,bought it on amazon,i was told i cant use it as staff arent allowed to be recorded,but they kind of hushed it a bit and let me do it,i coudnt set it up in the end as it was cheap and rubbish and the app didnt work but they have video cameras all over my facility so they cant argue about capacity there when theyre filming us all themselves.

both of you shoud ask the house management about their policy on acidentaly filming staff and people with reduced capacity and see what they say, they may agree to it just in your son/daughters bedroom and may need to get formal permission from each staff.

if either of you get to the point of being allowed to film and need any help with setting it up,just ask me as i know how cameras and also IP cameras work,dont bother with getting in the pro people-youd have to pay to get them to do it for you,i know of some free open source softwares that can do it for you. IP cameras woud be better as they are attached to an IP address so you can watch from anywhere in the world,these are heavily password protected though, a problem youd come across with some IP cameras is they are atached to a laptop which acts as the camera server and IP,i know back when i used to use them id smash them quite easily during meltdowns or through my epilepsy.

Jofisher profile image
Jofisher

Hi I’m not really 100% sure how to answer this but I will give it a go for the bits I know. There are supported living services and then there are residential care services and there are nursing care homes which my son is in due to all his health needs. You would need to call social services to get your sons needs assessed and they would be able to advise you as to what type of facility would suit your sons needs. They will give you a booklet of the placements suitable and then you could go and look at these places to decide what would be best for him and for your family. It’s not an easy decision to make, I found it agonising but you have to weigh up all the families needs not just your sons who has the extra needs. My son was only 5 when he started and he used to be escorted to school on a Monday morning and he returned on a Friday afternoon. He really did amazingly well there all things considered and there was a nursing establishment there with nurses and doctors on site so they could tend to his health needs and get him to hospital if they couldn’t stop his seizures with the things they had on site they were amazing and they managed to get his seizures better controlled. They also gave him such a good quality of life in he had access to all sorts of things like rock climbing as he got older trampolining on site canoeing swimming holidays outings discos all sorts of things and the schooling was superb. When he was 8 I became ill and not able to manage weekends so he then had 24/7 care. He was there for 20 years then he went to another facility which wasn’t suitable and became very bad but he’s been moved from there and is now in a nursing care home and he much better thank goodness and he’s local so I can get to him and the hospital when he’s poorly. My only advice is choose wisely and locally so your able to visit he can come home for visits if that’s what you would all like. If you feel your son needs an advocate to help him and yourself ask for him to have one. I wish you luck with your families journey it will be challenging but remember it’s very normal for your children to leave home and go to uni etc and it’s great for them to be with peers of their own age and having fun just choose wisely. Check out the charity commission website as they have all the facilities that they over see and you will see the reports they have done and how they’re rated.

HolisticMum profile image
HolisticMum in reply to Jofisher

That is so very interesting and informative.

Ronca profile image
Ronca

My son doesn't share his home and is in a privately rented house, supported by 2 staff 24/7 he prefers to come to me at weekends and is not keen on me spending much time at his house. The care providers have had safeguarding issues and several staff members have been dismissed. It is difficult to gauge how much time he spends alone in his room for example and how much actual interaction is going on. Cameras would provide a snapshot of what is going on.

Sarah_Mencap profile image
Sarah_Mencap

Hello Ronca

Thanks for posting.

This is a very difficult subject to cover on here - please do call our helpline if you would like to talk to someone on 0808 808 1111, or you can email helpline@mencap..org.uk if you prefer.

Best wishes

Sarah

Penny235 profile image
Penny235

My son lives in his own flat and has support staff visit him for a few hours each day. We fitted an IP camera in his living room some years ago and all his staff know it is there and that we can choose to see what is going on at any time. Originally it was so that we could check he was home and not wandering around town late at night - which did happen occasionally. Nowadays, we only use the camera a few times each day to check he is home and looks well.

We have, in the main, been very lucky with most of his care staff but the camera did allow us to check upon one member of staff who we suspected was not carrying out her work properly. So, the camera became a means of checking our son's presence and sometimes, checking the behaviour of his staff. We do not record pictures or voices on the camera although that facility is there. Possibly we are breaking a code of practice, maybe even the law, but as all the staff are aware of it and have never objected to its presence, we will carry on. After all, it is there to maintain his safety and well being, nothing else. IP cameras are not difficult to set up nowadays - the first one we had was a nightmare but that was about 7 years ago but with newer technology it's pretty straightforward.

I can understand that some shared homes might have problems with the use of cameras but if the individual has his/her own space or room, maybe this could be the place to set it up. For me, it is a means of checking my son is well and I would be lost without it.