Cultural diversity

The population of United Kingdom is diverse and complex in terms of ethnicity, culture, language and religion. The increase in ethnic diversity is also apparent in the population of children and young people with learning disabilities. The focus of this chapter is children and young people with learning disabilities (LD) from Black and Minority Ethnic (BME) communities as they face inequalities, discrimination and marginalisation. This chapter will highlight the key policy initiatives in addressing the need of people from BME communities in the UK and will explore the barriers in accessing mental health services. This chapter will conclude with the findings from a research study to explore self-defied service models for children and young people with learning disabilities from South Asian communities.