Jonathan Toms

I’m an Honorary Research Fellow attached to the School of History and Art History. I’ve researched and written on the twentieth-century history of psychiatry. My work has focussed on policy and practice directed at people with learning disabilities, and the development and demise of the mental hygiene movement in Britain. I’ve written on aspects of the development of therapeutic communities in England and the emergence and application of rights strategies in mental health and learning disability.

I’m particularly interested in the intersection of psychological, sociological and political theory with policy and practice in learning disability and mental health.

I’m currently finishing an article providing a new perspective on mid-twentieth century changes in policy and practice directed at learning disabled people in England and Wales.