Exploring Transitions to Adulthood for Young Disabled People: Personalisation and the Quiet Dismantling of Social Care

Abstract

ABSTRACT Across OECD countries, policy frameworks to support disabled young people in their transition to adulthood remain fragmented, under‐resourced and poorly aligned. This article examines how these longstanding weaknesses have been exacerbated by the shift towards personalisation in social care. Drawing on a three‐year qualitative study in England and Scotland, we show that promises of choice, control and autonomy—central to personalisation agendas—have largely failed to materialise for this generation. Instead, the shift to more individualised support in a prolonged period of budget cuts has eroded the social care infrastructure, diminishing both collective provision and the spaces that enable young people to build friendships, identities and meaningful social lives. Our findings highlight how young people encounter reduced support as they move from children to adult services, with families often forced into protracted negotiations within increasingly sparse local care markets. The withdrawal of community‐based provision, alongside inconsistent access to social workers and limited information, contributes to profound isolation and precarious transitions. We argue that personalisation, without adequate investment and collaborative infrastructure, can entrench inequalities and undermine the collective foundations of disabled people's advocacy. Rebuilding social care requires renewed attention to shared spaces, co‐production, and resourcing that enables genuine independence.