Social pedagogy as a model to provide support for siblings of children with intellectual disabilities

Abstract

The experiences of non-disabled children growing up with a sibling with an intellectual disability vary considerably, with reported impact ranging from increased mental health problems through evaluations of life enhancement. However, there is evidence that the net impact is neutral to positive, which was supported by the findings of this report of a service evaluation survey. The value of providing support to those young siblings is however clear. An established method of support is within a group of peers who also have a sibling with an intellectual disability, though no specific method for running this type of group has yet been fully explored. This article reports the views of 39 children taking part in such a group, analysing their perspective through a proposed model for the operation of sibling groups: social pedagogy. It was found that the closer the group’s activities were to social pedagogy, the more supported the children and young people felt.