Autonomy Project

Our focus this year will be the theory, practice and politics of supported decision-making and support for the exercise of legal capacity.  We will adopt a cross-cultural approach to the challenge, with particular attention to recent developments in Scotland (which has recently completed an intensive review of mental health and mental capacity legislation), Japan (which was recently reviewed by the UN Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, and where new pilot programs are underway), and Australia (which has long been a global leader in practices for decision-making support).  

• How are laws here in the UK and around the world being reformed to achieve greater inclusion for persons living with disabilities?  
• How can concrete practices of care be modified to ensure respect for the human rights of care recipients?  
• What does it mean to respect for the rights, will and preferences of persons in care settings?  
• How should practices of supported decision-making and advance choices be regulated?
• What is the state-of-the-art in research on interpretative support for the exercise of legal capacity?

The proposed schedule for this teaching programme is the following:

• Day 1:  9.30am - 5.30pm
• Day 2:  9:00am – 5:00pm
• Day 3:  9:00am – 4:30pm

The 2023 Summer School is co-sponsored by the Essex Autonomy Project, The Essex Human Rights Centre, and Supported Decision-Making Japan.

Teaching staff for the Summer School come from a variety of different disciplines and professions, including social care, medicine, philosophy, bioethics, disability studies, speech and language therapy and human rights. Confirmed speakers for 2023 are: 

Michael Bach (Institute for Research and Development on Inclusion and Society)

For over 25 years, Michael Bach has undertaken research and development in Canada and internationally on ways to advance the full inclusion and human rights of persons with disabilities. His research and publications cover disability theory, policy and practice in a range of areas including education, employment, and funding and delivery of community-based services. Michael’s particular area of expertise is in legal capacity of people with intellectual disabilities. Michael holds a Ph. D. in Sociology and Equity Studies from the University of Toronto’s Ontario Institute for Studies in Education, where his dissertation focused on developing a more inclusive theory of personhood on which to challenge the usual equation between intellectual disability and legal incapacity. Michael is currently an Open Society Foundations Fellow, continuing his international comparative research on the right to legal capacity for people with significant intellectual and cognitive disabilities.

Toshihiko Mizushima (Japan Legal Support Centre)

Toshi has devoted a significant portion of his career to civil law with a specific research interest in the Adult Guardians Law.  His legal social work activities as a staff attorney at Japan Legal Support Center (JLSC), such as establishing an advocacy center in conjunction with relevant organizations in such field, have had a great impact on local authorities, welfare agencies and lawyers in Japan.

Since 2014-2015, Mr. Mizushima had studied as a research fellow in the University of Essex (UK) in the field of “Mental Capacity Act 2005,” including the ideas surrounding the issue of supported decision-making for persons with disabilities as a mechanism for enforcement of UNCRPD. Since 2017, he has established the Japan Network of Supported Decision-Making (called “SDM-Japan”) supported by University of Tsukuba and the Nippon Foundation. Since 2018, he has been engaging to make the SDM guidelines released by the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare and its training programmes, as a team leader of the section of supported decision-making and adult guardianship in Japanese Law Society (JFBA) and a member of the state-sponsored expert committee covering issues of adult guardianship in Japan.

In September 2022, the CRPD Committee published concluding observation for Japan. Based on the recommendations, he is working with the local government, the Nippon Foundation and SDM-Japan to launch the Supported Decision-Making Project in Toyota City with the aim of establishing a sustainable SDM system that could replace the adult guardianship system.

Colin McKay (Edinburgh Napier University)

Colin became a Professor of Mental Health and Capacity Law at the Centre for Mental Health and Capacity Law at Edinburgh Napier University in 2020. From 2020 to September 2022 he was a member of the Executive of the review of Scottish mental health law chaired by Lord Scott. He is the Chair of JustRight Scotland, a human rights law centre, and a member of the Mental Health and Disability Committee of the Law Society of Scotland. He has a particular interest in the interfaces between law, medical ethics and human rights. From 2014 to 2020 he was Chief Executive of the Mental Welfare Commission for Scotland, a statutory body which protects and promotes the human rights of people with mental illnesses, learning disabilities, dementia and related conditions. Previously Colin worked in the Scottish Government for 14 years, including on mental health law reform as secretary to the Millan Committee and Bill manager for the Mental Health (Care and Treatment) (Scotland) Act 2003. He also worked on justice, strategy and public service reform. Before that he was a solicitor, and spent 10 years with ENABLE Scotland, Scotland’s leading learning disability charity.

Joanne Watson (Deakin University, Melbourne)

Joanne is Senior Lecturer in Disability and Inclusion at Deakin University in Melbourne, Australia, and has over 25 years’ experience in the disability sector as a clinician, trainer, support worker, family member and researcher.

Wayne Martin (Essex Autonomy Project)

Wayne is Professor of Philosophy at the University of Essex, where he is a member of the Essex Human Rights Centre and Director of the Essex Autonomy Project, a research and public policy initiative focusing on the ideal of self-determination (autonomy) in the context of care (health care, social care, eldercare, psychiatric care, etc.). He also holds an honorary research position with the South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust. He is the author of numerous research articles and reports focusing on issues concerning decision-making and mental capacity in the context of mental health care, and has been involved in policy formation both in the UK and abroad. From 2014-16 he led a team that supported the UK Ministry of Justice in preparation for the review by the United Nations of UK compliance with the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. In 2018 he served on the Equality and Human Rights topic group for the Wessely Review of the Mental Health Act.

It is an ideal course for students, researchers, policy makers, and frontline professionals in medicine, law and social work, as well as activists and service users, civil servants and legislators.  

This year’s summer school will be conducted in English and Japanese; translation services provided.  

A reading list will be distributed to registered delegates one month ahead of the Summer School. We recognise, however, that many delegates are professionals who may have little time for preparation, so advance reading is neither presumed nor required.

Applications for the 2023 Essex Autonomy Summer School have now closed. For information about future summer schools and any enquiries, please email autonomy@essex.ac.uk.

Fees for the 2023 Summer School:

Without accommodation:

£475: Early-Bird Registration; deadline 1 May;
£525: after 1 May.

With 2 nights accommodation:
(nights of 9 and 10 Aug.; bed and breakfast; subject to availability):

£725: Early-Bird Registration; deadline 1 May;
£775: after 1 May.

With 3 nights accommodation:
(nights of 8, 9 and 10 Aug.; bed and breakfast; subject to availability):

£850: Early-Bird Registration; deadline 1 May;
£900: after 1 May.

With 4 nights accommodation:
(nights of 8, 9, 10 and 11 Aug.; bed and breakfast; subject to availability):

£975: Early-Bird Registration; deadline 1 May;
£1025: after 1 May.

All fees for the summer school include tuition for the three day event, lunches and refreshments through the course of the day, and a Summer School Dinner on the first evening.  (Places are limited; first come, first served.) 

Accommodation can also be arranged separately and there are a number of different options to suit all budgets.

Wivenhoe House Hotel

Telephone: 01206863666 or email: reservations@wivenhoehouse.co.uk

On-campus accommodation

This can be booked via the EventEssex website.

Off-site accommodation

B&B accommodation in the nearby village of Wivenhoe, or in the town of Colchester.