With increasing dispersion of residences for people with learning difficulties into smaller units in the community, the issue of support systems become more important. This paper describes a survey of 15 residential managers in Mansfield and Ashfield to discover their perceptions of need for support and shortfalls in provision. The areas considered most important by the managers were staff support and staff development. The areas where the biggest shortfalls were perceived were support for residents needs, staff support and staff development. There was considerable variation between units. On the whole, managers of units run by statutory agencies felt that the needs for support for their services were met more adequately than managers of units run by nonstatutory agencies. Some of the implications of these findings are discussed.