Teacher and psychologist behind a pioneering study of children with Down's syndrome
Cliff Cunningham, who has died aged 71 of mesothelioma, an asbestos-related cancer of the lung, was a world pioneer in research and support for children with Down's syndrome. In the 1970s he established a study of more than 160 children born with the condition, following their progress into early adulthood. This was one of the largest surveys of its kind ever undertaken. By providing evidence of what people with Down's syndrome are able to achieve, he did much to raise public and professional expectations of people with intellectual disabilities.
The research team that he led at the Hester Adrian Research Centre (HARC) at Manchester University was notable for the quality of its research and for the strong support it provided for parents. He was an exemplary team leader, winning the loyalty and commitment of students and researchers from many countries who would later become leaders in their field.
The team produced a series of clearly written, accessible publications, which have been translated and disseminated across the world – in particular, his influential 1982 book Down's Syndrome: An Introduction for Parents (revised in 2006 and published as Down Syndrome: An Introduction for Parents and Carers). There was very little information available when the book first appeared and it was quickly established as the standard work for families.
Born in Liverpool, Cunningham spent his early years in Guernsey, in the Channel Islands. He trained as a science teacher at the College of St Mark & St John in London and then taught in two comprehensive schools, where he developed an interest in low-achieving and offending children, while also completing a part-time psychology degree at Birkbeck College.
In 1969, he joined me in Manchester as one of the founder members of HARC, a centre within the faculty of education dedicated to research on people with learning difficulties. He initially worked on a new project on the teaching of pre-reading skills to children who at that time were still considered "ineducable". In response to a timely challenge from the regional Mencap society, "Diagnosis – and then what?", he and Dorothy Jeffree also designed a series of innovative workshops to support parents of young children with intellectual impairments in activities designed to promote the all-round development of their child.
In 1973, he began his series of research and early intervention studies on some 90% of babies born with Down's syndrome in Greater Manchester. Starting with research on early motor development and social signals such as eye gaze, smiling, vocalising and mother-baby interactions and how these could be encouraged, he moved on to studies of temperament, the effects of early intervention and educational progress in mainstream and special schools. He later became a visiting professor at Liverpool John Moores University, where he collaborated with Sheila Glenn and was made an honorary fellow in recognition of his life's work.
Right from the beginning, he forged strong working relationships with paediatricians and other health professionals. One of these resulted in entirely new procedures for the initial communication of a diagnosis of Down's syndrome to new parents in Wigan, while another led to relevant in-service training of health visitors throughout Greater Manchester. His work continues through the influence it has had on policy and practice and as a result of his publications, teaching and advisory work, both nationally and internationally.
He is survived by his wife, Marta; his children, Barnaby, Oliver and Tamsin; and six grandchildren.
• Cliff Cunningham, teacher and psychologist, born 18 September 1941; died 17 May 2013