Key Learning Points:

1.

A person has an intellectual disability if

they need extra supports because they

have difficulty in thinking and

understanding.

2.

People can be identified as having an

intellectual disability if they score below

70 on an IQ test and experience

difficulties in various domains of

functioning, and where these problems

were evident before the age of 18.

3.

Intellectual disability is complex and can

affect people in many different ways.

4.

People with an intellectual disability have higher rates of mental health problems

than is experienced by the general population.

5.

This increase is thought to be due to the high number of mental health risk factors to

which people with an intellectual disability are exposed.

6.

Risk factors are generally categorised into biological, psychological, social and

developmental risks.