Understanding the lived experiences of working-age disabled people in England and their care-related transitions through the framework of the convoy model

Purpose This article uses care convoys as a theoretical framework to study care-related transitions. Design/methodology/approach Eight pairs of participants, consisting of a disabled person plus a carer/care worker, were interviewed (sixteen semi-structured interviews), with follow-up interviews with the disabled participants after two months (twenty-four interviews in total). Findings A thematic analysis was carried out. Three aspects of the care convoy model cast a critical lens on participant experiences: (1) whereas the convoy model suggests progression, disabled people were often blocked in their life course changes; (2) disabled participants had small convoys even at a relatively young age; (3) convoys were “decentred”, with people offering each other mutual support. Research limitations/implications Our contribution is to reflect on theory rather than data that can be generalised to a population. The dataset is limited in speaking to a small group of disabled people and carers/care workers in England. Looking at the life transitions of disabled people through the care convoy lens enables us to explore the ways in which implicit assumptions in the convoy model fit – and do not fit – the experiences of working age disabled people living in the community. Future research could consider whether our insights apply to projects with larger datasets and in different localities. Practical implications Using the care convoy model can help to illuminate more starkly the care experiences that disabled people and those who are labelled as their carers/care workers experience during life course transitions. We suggest that it needs to be adapted when using it in life course research with working age disabled people living in the community: (1) the assumption of progression is not always applicable and people can experience “detransitions”; (2) due to societal barriers, people may not have built up a convoy that exists of many members and of varied “closeness”; (3) the reciprocal nature of care can be so mutual and frequent within small convoys that there is no single person in the centre. Social implications Local and national governments must continue addressing societal attitudes and structural barriers that prevent disabled people from full participation, and create more inclusive policies and practices. For professionals in social and health care services, acknowledging people's support network and working more closely together is very important – with the disabled person and their convoy as well as between professionals. Originality/value These insights can be used to adapt the care convoy model to foreground the experiences of working-age disabled people at points of care-related transitions.