The paper's aim is to explain the development of the concept of personalisation and its dependence upon prior innovations such as independent living, person‐centred planning and individual budgets and explore its meaning, limitations and future prospects.
The paper takes the form of an analytical and historical review of ideas that have been important in the recent history of public policy for people with learning disabilities.
People with learning disabilities, along with other disabled people, have been engaged in a struggle to achieve full citizenship. The recent reforms that go by the name of “personalisation” may mark an important stage in the development of a fairer system, but on their own they will be insufficient to achieve that objective.
Personalisation is placed, with all its strengths and limitations, within the wider context of the development of policies for people with learning disabilities.
