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Making decisions that affect your own life is an important human right. Having the freedom to make your own decisions is part of becoming an adult. It makes you feel confident, capable and trustworthy.

However, people with disability are often not allowed to make a lot of their own decisions. This usually happens because someone else takes on the role to protect the person with disability from the consequences of poor choices. This can start from a very young age.

Young people with intellectual disability in particular are often not supported to learn from the consequences of their decisions because families work hard to keep them safe. Then as they get older, they may not have the same chances as their peers and siblings to start making their own decisions.

This resource, Supported decision making and Down syndrome is intended to provide suggestions and advice on how to support people with Down syndrome to be involved in decision making. 

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