Old parents and ageing handicapped people: a new problem, trying to response

The longevity increase which characterises the society evolution at the end of the 20th century, also concerns the handicaped people. The fact is part icularly outstanding for mentally handicaped people such as the Donwn's Syn drome population. We are nowadays discovering the first generation of the m uch less than over 40 year-old people much greater than. Among the eldest, many of them have never left home as specialised structures were non existe nt when they were young. Even those, not many of them in that age group, wh o have been able to have access to a CAT and to profit by a specialised cen tre, cannot carry on working after their 35 th birthday, because of their e arly ageing, and because of their tiredness. Therefore, they are early excl uded from the CAT, they lose their advantage of being in a specialised cent re and they finely have to go back home. Many parents of mentally handicape d people who live at home, even though they are not yet too old, seem to ge t more and more tired with their ageing advance, which, day after, makes th eir unremitting action harder and harder towards their child who is also ge tting older. The makers relate the innovating and experimental initiative o f a much less than Hameau Services much greater than, nowadays located at S ommieres-du-Clain, a rural parish in the south of Vienne country, which off ers to welcome still valid ageing parents and their mentally handicaped age ing child who lives in their own house. The collective services which are a ssured by the managing association, tend to relieve their in their daily ma terial tasks in the aim of contributing to the prejudice of the unexpected arrival of the manifestalions of the subordination through a proposition of a better life quality of the handicaped adult and his parents.