Mencap Statement

MACINTYRE UNDERCOVER: A VICTORY FOR EQUAL RIGHTS

Kent police has apologised for accusations made about the MacIntyre Undercover BBC programme of November 1999, which showed staff at the Brompton Care Home in Kent abusing residents with a learning disability.

Mencap's Director of Public Affairs, David Congdon, said:
"Mencap was one of the first organisations to see the unedited footage from the programme and we were appalled by what we saw. It was wrong for Kent police to not take the BBC investigation as seriously as it deserved. These were vulnerable people with a learning disability who were being threatened and abused. They deserved to be believed by the police and given a fair deal by our legal system, but they were let down.

"Until we achieve a world where everyone with a learning disability is treated with the same respect as everyone else, the BBC and other media need the freedom to expose bad practice.

"The MacIntyre Undercover programme was one of the first to bring mass public attention to the inequality that people with a learning disability face. And we know that abuse is still going on. We hope the media interest from this case will also bring attention to our Behind Closed Doors sex abuse campaign. There are at least an estimated 1,400 cases of sex abuse against people with a learning disability every year, but only 6% of cases reach conviction. And if they are successful the derisory sentences act as no deterrent to determined abusers. The government must urgently change the law to give equal protection and the same basic human rights to people with a learning disability."

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Notes to Editors
· There are around 1.5 million people with a learning disability in the UK
· Learning disabilities have many different causes but are always lifelong. A learning disability can affect someone's life in many ways, causing difficulties in learning, communicating or doing everyday things. A learning disability does not prevent someone from learning and achieving a lot in life, if given the right support
· For more Information and advice on learning disability call the Learning Disability Helpline on 0808 808 1111 or visit www.mencap.org.uk