Men with intellectual disabilities and sexual offending histories: an exploration of their experiences of living within a secure hospital setting

Background: There is a national drive to transform services for individuals with intellectual disabilities, where care is provided within the community rather than hospital settings. However, there are limited quality community provisions for those with more complex care needs such as forensic risks like sexual offending. There has been limited research focusing on this client groups experiences of inpatient services and the treatment they have received from their own perspective. This study aimed to explore their experiences of living in a secure service focusing on treatment for sex offences and make recommendations for community services. Method: Ten men with intellectual disabilities and sexual offending histories took part in an interview designed to explore their experiences of living within a secure hospital setting. The data was analysed using Thematic Analysis. Results: Three key themes relating to the participant’s experiences within the hospital were identified. These were: “experience of hospital,” “personal journey through secure services” and “closeness to home.” Conclusions: Men’s experiences at a secure hospital were generally positive in terms of a supportive staff approach. Difficulties existed around the hospital organisation affecting the support they received. Some participants experienced a struggle to become more independent and move to less restrictive environments due to their perceived risk levels. Many participants found being away from home to be hard and longed to closer to their family. In contrast around half of the participants did not want to live near their hometown due to family difficulties, negative peer influences or fears of consequences for their sexual offending. Implications for community service planning are considered