A demographic sample of 28 severely and profoundly mentally handicapped adults with a mental age of four years and below were assessed on Part 1 of the Adaptive Behavior Scale (ABS) at three points 18 months apart. The Griffiths Mental Development Scales and Reynell Developmental Language Scales were also conducted at the first and last assessment points. The subjects were resident in either a small community-based home, the parental home or other residential institutions. The small-home group showed the greatest adaptive behaviour change particularly in the areas of independent functioning, domestic skills and self-direction and on the scale total. Although reservations are expressed on the accuracy of assessment, the ABS data and the comparative result received some validation from the mental age and language assessments. Gains were independent of subject characteristics. The study adds to the literature showing adaptive behaviour gains arising from transfer from institutional to more normal residential environments. However, in attributing the results found to the general characteristics of the residential settings, the explicit programming emphasis of the small-home service should not be overlooked.