What Does 'Feeling at Home' Mean for Adults with Intellectual Disabilities Living in Group Homes in England?

Background: Shared housing for adults with intellectual disabilities with staff support, is a common housing model internationally. We explored an overlooked aspect of group homes, namely the extent to which they enable a sense of 'feeling at home' for residents. Method: A diverse group of 19 housemates participated in a photovoice study. Participants took photos in their homes and discussed them in individual interviews and in groups. Data was analysed using reflexive thematic analysis. Results: Residents' experience of home was multi-dimensional. 'Feeling at home' related to home as a site of identity cultivation (personal home); physical comfort or 'misfitting' (physical home) and home as the locus of key relationships (social home). Conclusion: Achieving a sense of 'feeling at home' requires engagement in practices of home-making. Many of our participants required support from staff to engage in these practices. For some housemates their experience of home was conditional and precarious.