Hft

Hft, a charity supporting learning disabled adults across England and Wales

Hft is a long-established charity that supports learning disabled people across England and Wales. Its stated aim is a future in which learning disabled people can live the life they choose, and it frames its work around the barriers many of them face in employment, connection and everyday life. The organisation describes itself as providing housing, day opportunities and supported employment for learning disabled adults, alongside campaigning for change and fundraising for new opportunities.

According to the charity, it supports more than 2,700 learning disabled people. Its history page gives a different figure, stating that it now supports more than 2,200 adults with learning disabilities nationwide. Hft was established in 1962 by a group of parents.

Care and support services

Hft organises its support offer around several distinct service types, each aimed at a different level of need or way of living.

• Residential care: presented as an option for people who need full-time, specialist care, with trained staff supporting residents in Hft homes.
• Supported living: support for learning disabled people to live however and wherever they choose, adapted to each person.
• Domiciliary care: support for people living in their own homes, aimed at greater independence.
• Day opportunities: activities matched to each person's interests and found within their local community.
• Supported employment and internships: work carried out in partnership with employers, colleges and training organisations so that learning disabled or autistic people who want to work can do so.

Beyond these, Hft refers to further learning disability support services intended to help people live as they choose, make friends and advocate for themselves. The charity describes the intensity of its support as ranging from a few hours a week to 24 hours a day.

Luv2meetU and community connection

Among Hft's named services is Luv2meetU, which appears as a distinct offering within its support section and is also linked to social and leisure activity: one item in the charity's news list describes an Luv2meetU group celebrating the life and legacy of Dolly Parton. The charity also points to friendships and relationship services as part of its wider provision.

Campaigning, fundraising and involvement

Hft presents campaigning for positive change and fundraising as core parts of its work rather than side activities. It invites involvement through donations, fundraising, events, campaigns, corporate partnerships, philanthropy and gifts in wills. It also runs a newsletter and publishes learning disability stories and a media centre.

Recent items highlighted by the charity include an award for a 90-year-old father who raised more than £100,000 for the organisation supporting his son, the appointment of Sally Daniels as Executive Director of Finance and Organisational Excellence, a new community hub in North Wales, and a photography group whose members put local landscapes on sale.

Resources and public guidance

The charity maintains a resources and guidance section covering what a learning disability is, disability rights and legal matters, and social care. It also publishes practical guidance, including tips for applying for Personal Independence Payments (PIPs) and an explanation of the difference between a learning disability and a learning difficulty in UK usage.

Employment, training and governance

Hft recruits support workers and sets out roles, a support work quiz, and training and qualifications for those positions. It states that it helps colleagues develop the specialist skills and expertise needed for the support it believes in, and that it seeks to give them time to build trusted relationships with the people and families they support. The charity publishes information on its purpose and long-term strategy (Hft 2033), CQC regulation and ratings, governance, history, and memberships and accreditations, and it operates a referrals route for those seeking support.

Hft is a registered charity. Its registered name is HF Trust Ltd, registered in England and Wales as company no 734984 and charity no 313069, with VAT no 609 6687 00.