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In this Issue:

News Update(pages 1 – 6 )Sharing Good Practice(pages 7 – 9)Funding Opportunities(pages 10 – 11)Resources(pages 12 – 13)Publications(page 14)Conferences(pages 15 – 16)

If you would like further copies of this Newsletter at cost, or to contribute to the September 2006 issue, or to join the National Learning Disability and Ethnicity Network, please contact:Bridget Fisher or Pam Smith Tel: 01246 555043Email: bridget.fisher@ arcuk.org.uk or pam.smith@arcuk.org.uk. For further NLDEN info visit www.lden.cswebsites.org

The NLDEN Newsletter is produced by ARC. ARC is a national umbrella organisation supporting providers of services for people with a learning disability. ARC is not responsible for views of contributors to this newsletter.

The National Learning

Disability and Ethnicity

Network logo was

designed by Anuradha

Patel.

Issue 10: May 2006

The National Learning Disability and Ethnicity Network

Mixed FortunesDelegates at the ‘Making Things Better for People From Minority Communities’ event in London on 6th April.

This has been a very busy time for the Network and there has been some good news and some disappointing news.

Firstly the future of the Network. It seems likely that the Department of Health will continue some financial support to the Network at a reduced rate. See report on Rob Grieg’s presentation to the National Advisory Group (Page 2). This will mean that we can sustain

the information sharing and telephone help we currently deliver.

The Network ExpandsLloyds/TSB have awarded ARC a further grant to sustain the BME team and to develop partnership working on BME issues based on the Network contacts. The grant will also allow us to extend the Network into Wales. This work should begin in June.

Because of the significant reduction in funding we have

been considering ways to keep the Newsletter going. Later in the year we may have to start a subscription fee for public/statutory network members. We have decided to drop the number of Newsletters produced from 4 a year to 3 (a print and mailing cost saving).

Working in PartnershipThe new work for the VPST (Valuing People Support Team) being done in partnership between ARC, FPLD & University of

2

Update

At the third meeting of the National Advisory group on Learning Disabilities and Ethnicity, on 28/03/05, Rob Greig told us about his new role and some current developments on meeting the needs of people with learning disabilities from minority communities.

As National Director for Learning Disability at the Department of Health he will be seeking to influence government policy and communicate policies widely. Soon he will be joined by a co-director who has learning difficulties. Rob will be co-chair of the Task Force and will spend one day a week in the new Office of Disability Issues. He will also be working with the DH Director for Equality and Human Rights, Surinder Sharma.

The National Advisory Group will also continue to have links with

the members of the Valuing People Support Team (VPST) and their programme leads Sue Carmichael and Debra Moore. The team is now based in the regional offices of the Care Services Improvement Partnership (CSIP). The CSIP lead on ethnicity is Paddy Cooney and because CSIP represents a number of groups – older people, young people, people with mental health problems, for example – there will be opportunities together to ensure that policies are sensitive to the needs of a people from minority communities.

National Advisory Group meeting

Lancaster is continuing. There were 5 days of workshops called ‘Making Things Better’ organised and held throughout March. Unfortunately, the events in Bristol and Manchester did not attract sufficient interest for them to run. However, the events that were held have received very positive feedback and the information from these events is being combined with a further survey of ethnicity work being done by Partnership Boards. When this report is finished – probably June – it will be delivered to senior service managers. We are also hoping to hold a launch event in June for the information on legal requirements and combine that with a further ‘Making Things Better’ workshop.

Valuing People TranslationsAnother piece of good news is that a summary of Valuing People has finally been produced in the following languages: Punjabi, Guyarati, Urdu, Chinese, Arabic and Somali. The information is available in both written and CD formats, and is free. Please contact Pam Smith of the Network at pam.smith@arcuk.org.uk.

Regional MeetingsThe regional ethnicity networks have held some promising meetings and the National Network manager was invited to take part in these. These events provide valuable opportunities to learn form each other and to closely examine local initiatives to improve services without having to travel long distances.

‘Moving On Up’ Fun DaysThe project to support young people from minority communities at the move to adulthood (‘Moving on Up’) is holding 2 free fun and information days for young people – to be held in London on 23rd May and in Leeds on 13th June (see page 16). There is also a day for professionals to find out about the best use of the ‘Moving on Up’ website (www.movingonup.info) at the University of East London on 21st June. For further details contact Sharon Borrett: sharon.borrett@arcuk.org.uk.

Continuing Good PracticeWe are very glad that the Network has been enabled to continue – it is

working with a large cross section of the communities representing people from minority communities with learning disabilities at various events – for example, we have been asked to send representatives to the Department of Constitutional Affairs Race Impact Assessment of the Mental Capacity Act. It is by constantly sharing and spreading news of good practice that we can all make improvements in the life experiences of people with Learning Disabilities.

A Date to NoteThe next Annual Ethnicity & Learning Disability National Conference will be held on 6th November at the Park Crescent Conference Centre, Regent’s Park, London. Please make a note in your diary and contact Pam now to book your place (pam.smith@arcuk.org.uk)!

This year there will be free places for people with a disability and their supporters but these will be limited to 30 on a first-come-first-served basis.

The VPST has continued to contribute financially to the National Advisory Group, convened and supported by the Foundation for People with Learning Disabilities, the Learning Disability and Ethnicity Network and the Ethnicity Training Network. Meeting the needs of those from minority ethnic communities is a theme that runs through the priorities of the VPST and the work funded by the Learning Disability Development Fund money (LDDF), (please see www.valuingpeople.org.uk). Meeting the needs of those from minority

communities will also be a priority in inspections, for the Advocacy Grant Programme run by the British Institute of Learning Disability (BILD) and for the Leadership Programme run by the VPST.

The current survey of Learning Disability Partnership Boards by Chris Hatton from Lancaster University will be an opportunity to check out progress and see where support is needed to improve the lives of people with learning disabilities from minority communities.

The National Advisory Group is looking forward to keeping in touch with Rob and the Task Force about policies that impact on the lives of people from minority communities.

Hazel MorganFoundation for People with Learning Disabilities

Many families with disabled children are not claiming the benefits and tax credits they are entitled to, and are missing out vital extra income, despite the fact that 55% of disabled children are living in, or at the margins of, poverty.

It’s to help lift these families out of poverty that charity Contact a Family is launching its three year ‘Pounds for Parents campaign’, which will provide the advice and information parents need to claim what’s theirs.

“Caring for a disabled child can be exhausting,” said Contact a Family’s Campaign Manager, Mark Robertson, “and parents often don’t have the extra energy to track down information, or make sense of complex forms - even if its to their advantage. Under our Pounds for Parents campaign, we’ll be taking clear and accessible information out to families, while our Parent Advisers will be on hand to offer expert advice, both face to face and at the end of the phone.”

Over the three years, Pounds for Parents will be highlighting the range of benefits and tax credits available,

starting this April, when the campaign will be focusing on finding and paying for childcare for disabled children, including the increased entitlements available.

There are around 770,000 disabled children in the UK, and although benefit payments can be generous, many families do not claim what they are due, because the system is difficult to understand, and forms are unwieldy. As a result, many struggle to make ends meet, what with average incomes around one quarter below the UK average, and considerably higher expenses, it costs around three times as much to raise a disabled child than other children.

“Our Pounds for Parents campaign will provide all the information parents need in one place”, added Mark Robertson, “and we hope that we’ll be able to unlock considerable sums of extra money during the campaign, to greatly enhance families‚ quality of life.”

To find out more about benefits, tax credits, or any other aspect of bringing up a disabled child, telephone Contact a Family’s helpline on 0808 808 3555, or visit the website at www.cafamily.org.uk. Watch out for information on childcare and other benefits in the forthcoming months, and for events and workshops in your area.

For further information Telephone: Louise Moffatt on 020 7608 8741 Email: louise.moffatt@cafamily.org.uk

Charity launches Pounds for Parents campaign

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Update

4

Update

Social care charity Turning Point remains concerned that little has been done to address the large number of ethnic minority patients being detained for mental illness, after the government announced its new plans on treatment.

“Even with the (government’s proposed) amendments to the 1983 (Mental Health) act, we still see too many people from black and ethnic minorities being detained,” insisted chief executive Lord Adebowale.

“There must be a full racial equality impact assessment

and effective measures taken to tackle this inexcusable discrimination.

“We know that people from black and ethnic minorities face glaring inequalities in the mental health system. They are far more likely to be detained or secluded and they are disproportionately represented in mental health.”

Taken from: www.politics.co.ukDebate Issue of the Day – 27th March 2006

Both the letter to PCTs and the letter saying how much LDDF there is for each place in 2006-7 and 2007-8 can be downloaded in pdf, word and excel format from: www.valuingpeople.gov.uk/MoneyLDDF.htm

Turning Point: mental health system fails ethnic minorities

This is Britain’s second great age of immigration. It seems to be passing with much less fanfare than the first one. For the past decade, a wave of incomers has been sweeping across the country, scattering new cultures, languages and religions into almost every town and village. In 1997, a total of 63,000 work permit holders and their dependants came to Britain. In 2003, it was 119,000. Altogether, between 1991 and 2001, the UK population increased by 2.2 million, some 1.14 million of whom were born abroad And all this was before EU enlargement in May 2004, which pulled in 130,000 more people from the new member states in its first year alone.

Asylum seekers and refugees (people who have been granted asylum) may also have served as a distraction from the general immigration boom. They

certainly need more support from the state than migrant workers, and their numbers did indeed rise worldwide in the late 1990s. Nevertheless, they remain just a fraction of the immigration picture in Britain. In 2003, when the asylum panic was at its height, there were 1.4 million overseas workers in the UK and just 49,370 asylum seekers. Now, thanks to some extremely tough government love, the total seeking asylum is closer to 10,000.

The immigrants themselves are far more diverse now than they were in the 1950s. All the significant immigrant and immigrant descended communities in Britain, are still dominated by the traditional groups of Caribbeans, Chinese, south Asians and Irish. But the new arrivals of the past decade are as likely to come from Zimbabwe, eastern Europe, the Middle East or the Philippines.

The trends of the second immigration age may be clearest in London, but a separate story is also developing outside the capital, where it is now commonplace for employers to find

staff through agencies that recruit abroad, often through the internet. This applies as much to large organisations such as the NHS, which has brought in many thousands of health professionals from overseas in the past decade, as it does to farmers in Norfolk or hotels in the Isles of Scilly.

The arrival of immigrants in smaller groups than before, and from a greater variety of places, is probably another reason why they have caused fewer shockwaves, and substantial improvements in legislation and policing have certainly helped. But the main root of our comparative harmony – the theme that emerged most strongly from the hundreds of interviews conducted for this issue – is that we have simply become more accepting of difference.

Taken from an article in ‘The Guardian’:www.guardian.co.uk/britain/article/0,,1692836,00.html

23 January 2006

Immigration news

5

Update

Where do you live?I live in Wood Green, London. I’ve lived there for the last eight years. I live in a council flat on my own.

How do you spend your free time?I like surfing the internet and going to football matches. I go to see Leeds United play – I’ve held a season ticket for them for many years. Elland Road is a great stadium; I go up with the London branch of supporters. We hang around the city and go for a few drinks before the game.

What are you most proud of?Getting the council flat I wanted. It was quite difficult; the council could be quite slow. But having gone from shared accommodation to my own flat was good. What is your job at People First?I work at People First (Self Advocacy) in London. I’m the office manager, and we’ve got another guy with a learning disability, Andrew Lee, who’s the director. Between us we run the organisation. We’ve got some supporters who help us, but we don’t rely on them to take over. I go up and down the country to see other People First groups and help them set up self advocacy.

Who are your heroes?I’d have to say Linford Christie. He’s an excellent athlete. I think he’s done really well for athletics. Also, the guy in the wheelchair who has a physical disability and is on the BBC adverts [Ade Adepitan]. He’s a basketball player and was in a programme called Beyond Boundaries. I met him once or twice. He’s really interesting and friendly.

You’re involved in the Disability Rights Commission’s ‘Taking the dis’ campaign. How did this come about?I’ve been discriminated against a number of times. A woman serving me in a cafe was ignorant when she spoke to me. Because of the way I spoke she made assumptions that I was drunk. I’ve been telling the Disability Rights Commission about my experiences to help them with their campaign on discrimination.

Do you think that more people with a learning disability should be in high positions like you?Definitely. Mainly people just get a job packing boxes of peas or something – the money they give you is peanuts. We’re in the 21st century and it’s important to tell parliament to stop discrimination.

What changes would you like to see made to help people with a learning disability?I think I’d get rid of day centres. The people that run them often don’t think about people who have learning difficulties. The ones that I’ve been to do not cater for black and ethnic minorities with learning difficulties.

Raymond Johnson, took part in the Disability Rights Commission’s ‘Taking the dis’ awareness-raising campaign. Raymond works at People First.

Viewpoint, Mencap, 123 Golden Lane, London EC1Y 0RTMarch/April 2006. Viewpoint is also available on CD (this is free to people with learning disabilities and can be obtained by calling: 0207 696 5509).

Raymond Johnson, People First, LondonDiscusses Disability Rights Campaign

As part of the reason the Network exists is to share news and good practice we frequently receive news of events and updates on information that may be of interest to you. We would like to keep you informed of these as and when they arrive into the BME office – especially when they arrive between issues of the newsletter!

With this in mind, we have put together an emailing group -‘Keeping You Posted’.If you do not already receive network news bulletins via email but would like to do so, please forward your email address to: pam.smith@arcuk.org.uk

Hoping to hear from you soon.

Pam SmithBME Projects AdministratorTel: 01246 555043

PS. Later this summer I hope to make contact with some of you to say ‘hello’, check that your contact details are correct and to find out how you feel about the Network. Speak to you soon!

‘Keeping You Posted!’

Changing people’s attitudes to their health, widening the pool of health service providers, creating a more diverse workforce are just some of the areas of real progress being made by PCTs and documented in the first Progress Report published by the Race for Health programme. Race for Health’ is a PCT-run programme, sponsored by the Department of Health and Central Manchester PCT. It is focused on creating a health service where the needs of black and minority ethnic communities drive the health services they receive. The Progress Report combines a multi-faith calendar, key information about member PCTs and practical examples of how PCTs are delivering race equality throughout the country. It also demonstrates why race equality is needed: - South Asian people are 50% more

likely to die prematurely from coronary heart disease than the general population.

- The prevalence of strokes amongst African-Caribbean and South Asian men is 40% to 70% higher than for the general population.

- Young black men are six times more likely than white counterparts to be sectioned under the Mental Health Act for compulsory treatment.

It is published at the same time as the Race for Health guide to commissioning, ‘Towards Race Equality in Health’. This is the first in a series of guides put together by practitioners from the member PCTs. It includes guidance on implementation as well as policy formation. Surinder Sharma, National Director, Equality & Human Rights at the Department of Health, commented: “The Race for Health PCTs operate at the coalface of the NHS. The restructuring and changing provider base provides real opportunities to embed race equality into everything we do. Race for Health shows us how to do this. Producing its Progress Report as a calendar is just the latest sign of the programme living up to its reputation of being relevant, creative and ambitious. This is the right initiative at the right time.” Evelyn Asante-Mensah OBE, Chair of Central Manchester PCT and Chair of Race for Health, added: “Race for Health is in a different league to previous NHS race equality initiatives. Our Progress Report shows how PCTs are making a real difference, whether as an employer, provider, commissioner or partner. It is through sharing the learning that we believe we can make most headway. We are ambitious for this programme and for ourselves, but perhaps most importantly, for all the citizens of this country.”

For further information: Tel: 0161 958 4081Email: enquiries@raceforhealth.orgWeb: www.raceforhealth.org

Race equality delivering benefits to NHS

Dear Network Members,

6

Update

Mission Statement:

1. To promote improvements in the quality of, and access to, healthcare and health promotion in south Asians.

2. To promote research that leads to the above objectives.

This is done by:

• Health promotion campaigns.• Healthcare research in South

Asians.

To make the charity effective they disseminate information, act as a pressure group and promote scholarship and research.

SAHF works closely with the following organisations:

• National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE)

• Department of Health• British Heart Foundation• National Heart Forum• British Cardiac Society• Diabetes UK• National Electronic Library

for Health• West Midlands Ethnic Liaison

Committee (WELCOME)

For full details of the Foundation’s work visit their website at: www.sahf.org.uk

The South Asian Health Foundation (UK)

Wakefield Social Services and Health have made an enthusiastic start in implementing the Valuing People ethnicity agenda and in making services more appropriate, culturally competent and accessible to people from BME communities.

Based on the Ethnicity Framework for Action, a 15-point action plan has been developed. The Ethnicity Sub-group will work through this plan in the next 12-18 months. Wakefield Social services key ethnicity developments for 2005 include: • We have formed an ethnicity sub

group.• The Partnership Board regularly

discusses issues relating to ethnicity as part of its agenda

• Wakefield Partnership Board has appointed a BME Development Worker in May 2005 to implement the Valuing People Ethnicity & Learning Difficulties Framework for Action.

Current ethnicity development work actions for 2006 include: • Identifying and working with

local BME carers and service users, with the aim of improving representation on the Partnership Board and sub group.

• Working towards forming a BME Service user/carers group.

• Developing Wakefield learning disabilities ethnicity newsletter.

• Addressing information issues such as accessibility in reference to different formats and different languages. This is done through our information steering group.

• Recruiting BME/bilingual volunteer advocates and developing an audio cassette on ‘What is advocacy’ for BME communities.

• Sub group has decided that they would like to utilise the Ethnicity Training Network. The BME development worker will be developing skills in training in cultural competence.

• Staff are being encouraged to attend the Islamic awareness day course and in addition to this Wakefield social services have an equality and diversity training program for all staff.

• Implementing the Ethnicity checklist from the Valuing People Ethnicity Framework.

• Day services have begun to use other music such as Bollywood and bangra and celebrating of festivals such as EID.

• Learning Disability services addressing long-term hallal food option for BME service users.

If anyone would like to find out more about the work Wakefield Social Services and Health are doing for BME communities or would like share good practices then please do contact:

Kashif Ahmed, BME Development WorkerTel: 07770346794 Email: kahmed@wakefield.gov.uk

Service improvement in Wakefield

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Sharing

Sharing

8

Our register of charities shows over 22,000 religious charities of all shapes and sizes working in England and Wales today, playing a vital role in society. As a modern regulator, it’s important the Charity Commission has a clear understanding of the context in which faith-based charities work. We want to hear their experiences of working with us and look at ways to encourage effectiveness in this unique part of the charity sector.

So we have set up a programme of events to visit mosques, churches and temples all over the country to listen to the experiences of faith communities and use this information to improve the services we provide.

We’ve defined faith-based charities as not only those whose sole aim is to advance a particular faith (eg, Islam or Sikhism) but also those where a particular faith is the driving force behind the charitable activity (eg, to advance education or relieve poverty). Following our successful consultation with independent and black majority churches, we have also held seminars planned for Bolton, and London. Other events for Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Jewish and minority

faith groups are also planned.

This project will involve several thousand charities and will continue throughout 2006 and we’re looking forward to hearing the views of such a wide range of faith-based charities. A report of our findings from these events will be published later this year.

Attendance at the seminars is usually by invitation but if you’re from a faith-based charity and interested in contributing your views or would like more information on our work in this area please contact our press office on 0207 674 2333.

Taken from: www.charitycommission.gov.uk/news/faith.asp

The aim of this research is to identify issues around the accessibility of our community team learning disability (CTLD) to people from black and minority ethnic (BME) backgrounds. We are a team of community nurses, speech and language therapists, clinical psychologists and physiotherapists working in Newcastle. Non-white ethnic groups represent 6.9% of the city’s population and many staff have concerns that our services may be inaccessible to these groups. Representatives from each profession met and, with the support of a research assistant, began a study to look at ways of improving communication with service users, cultural sensitivity and flexibility.

Part 1: AuditAn audit of all referrals to the CTLD over ten years was carried out, with the aim of identifying which BME groups were being referred most often and whether referrals had increased. The audit showed a slight increase in the number of referrals from BME groups over the 10 years, however, overall uptake of services from these groups was low. In 2002 only 4% of CTLD referrals came from BME groups. Furthermore, the audit revealed that referral information on ethnicity, language and religion was often incomplete or inaccurate.

Part 2: Questionnaire A questionnaire was given to staff

to investigate their knowledge and awareness of ethnicity, culture, language and religion: 47% of staff felt that CTLD services were inaccessible to BME groups and 44% did not know which ethnic groups were commonly referred to the CTLD.

Part 3: TrainingIn response to the results of the audit and questionnaires, two cultural awareness training days were organised for CTLD staff covering areas including working with interpreters, working with asylum seekers and refugees, spirituality, religion and staff attitudes. The trainers included local presenters experienced in working with people from BME backgrounds and a national presenter who had expertise in the area of learning disability and ethnicity. After the training, a questionnaire was sent to staff investigating their cultural awareness and asking them to evaluate the two training days. The results indicated some improvements in

Listening to faith based charities

Improving the accessibility of the Newcastle Community Team Learning Disability to people from black and minority ethnic backgrounds

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Sharing

Sheffield Adult Family Placement Service has 9 black and 4 Asian approved carers. Following the two most recent carer preparation courses we have had applications from four people who attended and who are from the BME community, two of whom are Arabic speaking. Unfortunately we are not able to report yet that the assessments are complete and that they have been approved. However we are hopeful that will be the case for at least 3 of them.

Our intention is to increase the number of black carers from the various BME Communities in Sheffield, which include individuals from the African, Afro-Caribbean &

Eastern European Community. We aim to respond more appropriately to referrals as a consequence. One of the half time Senior Practitioners, Barbara Spence, is taking a lead on this.

We have service users from the BME population in a range of placements including long term and befriending placements. As well as trying to meet cultural and religious needs we have been asked for different languages including Arabic and Italian.

All workers are being asked to attend Equality and Diversity training. This will also be available to approved carers. It’s aims and objectives are to understand equality and diversity and to comply with equality and diversity legislation, to have an understanding of the diverse make up of Sheffield, and to work positively with difference.

Maria DI Domenico / Barbara Spence, Sheffield AFPS, Contact: Barbara.Spence@sheffield.gov.uk

Supporting people from minority communities in Adult Placement in Sheffield

cultural awareness and some evidence of the impact of the training on clinical practice, for example staff were asking service users more questions to ensure they were being considerate in the intervention and introducing the interpreter properly to the session.

Part 4: Interviews Despite the results of the training evaluation, many staff still felt that services were inaccessible and that this issue needed to be investigated further by talking to local people from black and minority groups. The final part of the project involves in-depth interviews with:

• approximately 15 CTLD service users or their parents/carers from BME groups, including people who do and do not use interpreters,

• approximately 15 individuals or their families from BME groups

who are eligible to access CTLD services but who are not doing so,

• approximately 10 CTLD professionals who work with BME groups,

• approximately 10 local professionals who work with BME groups.

Interview questions were developed following a focus group held with individuals from a variety of local BME communities. It is hoped these interviews will identify ways in which the CTLD can improve its accessibility and offer a more sensitive, person-centred and flexible approach to working with people from BME groups.

We are currently in the process of interviewing CTLD service users and their families as part 4 of the research. Initial findings from the interviews have shown that families who speak English are relatively happy with

the accessibility of CTLD services. However, we expect that interviews with service users and families who do not speak English and with those who are not using services will highlight issues around accessibility. An article which gives further details of the results of parts 1-3 of the study has been submitted for publication.

For further details on the article or for more information on the research please contact:Amy Hebblethwaite, Alison Woods, Anne Stokle or Annette HamesCommunity Team Learning Disability,Benton House,136 Sandyford Road,Newcastle upon TyneNE2 1QETel: 0191 2106868or e-mail: amy.hebblethwaite@nap.nhs.uk

Opportunities

10

Lloyds TSB Foundation announces new England and Wales-wide funding priorities for older people and people with a learning disability

The Lloyds TSB Foundation has announced its new funding priorities for 2006 for charities with beneficiaries throughout all parts England and Wales. The Foundation gives grants to charities that help people, especially those who are disadvantaged or disabled, to play a fuller role in their communities, and has identified the following new priority areas:

1. Supporting charities working with people with a learning disability to enable them to play a fuller role in their communities:

The Foundation will fund work that enables people with a learning disability to have better access to information and services including housing choices, health and employment. Of particular interest are projects that promote independent advocacy to enable people with a learning disability to play a fuller role in the community.

2. To support charities working with older people to enable them to play a fuller role in their communities:

The Foundation will fund work that tackles isolation and enables disadvantaged older people to have better access to services including housing choices, healthcare and employment. Of particular interest are charities that are working with older people with a disability and also charities that take an

intergenerational approach to enabling older people to play a fuller role in the community.

The following priorities remain for 2006:

3. To support charities working with people from black and minority ethnic (BME) communities to enable them to play a fuller role in their communities:

The Foundation will fund work that enables people to have better access to information and services including health, housing, employment. The Foundation also wishes to support mainstream charities in developing their policies and practice on diversity and equality for staff, volunteers, Trustees and users.

4. To support charities working with refugees and asylum seekers to enable them to play a fuller role in their communities:

The Foundation will fund work that tackles isolation and enables people to have better access to information and services including health, housing, employment, community services and legal advice. The Foundation wishes to support mainstream charities to develop their policies and practice on diversity and equality for staff, volunteers, Trustees and users.

80% of the England and Wales-wide £3.2 million programme budget will be available for funding in the above priority areas leaving 20% for more general work enabling disadvantaged people to pay a fuller role in their communities. Grants will be for one,

two or very exceptionally three years to support the following types of work:

• direct service provision,• support to second tier membership

or umbrella bodies,• infrastructure support,• pilots and the research and

development of work for replication throughout England and Wales,

• collaborative projects.

At an England and Wales-wide level the Foundation operates 2 programmes:

• the Community Programme which is the largest and gives grants to charities working on new or established projects that benefit people throughout England and Wales,

• the Collaborative Programme which is specifically established to facilitate new ways of working and to promote the exchange of ideas, knowledge and good practice.

Please note that each of the Foundation’s ten regional offices also has their own regional priorities for charities with beneficiaries in that area (see Foundation website below for details).

As there is a high demand for grants, the Foundation recommends that potential applicants obtain a copy of the 2006 guidelines and England and Wales-wide funding plan (including full details of 2006 priorities) from the website. If a potential applicant is interested in applying, please contact the England and Wales team (details on the website: www.lloydstsbfoundations.org.uk).

11

Opportunities

BME Advocacy

The King’s Fund’s black and minority ethnic (BME) advocacy programme is offering bursaries towards Advocacy Resource Exchange (ARX) courses.

Dispensed on a first-come-first-served basis, 12 awards worth £60 each are being offered to voluntary organisations towards the cost of an ARX course. Organisations interested in the scheme should first contact ARX on 0208 880 4545 or arx@advocacyresource.net stating which course they are interested in and their need for a King’s Fund bursary.

In 2000, the King’s Fund sent up a five-year funding programme to bring a strategic approach to community-based advocacy.

The programme has built on our experience that community-based spokespeople can play a significant role in ensuring better health for people living in some of London’s most disadvantaged areas.

Working with the University of East London and the East London Advocacy Consortium, we helped pilot a training scheme in which more than 50 people gained official recognition as health advocates through undergraduate certificates, with the King’s Fund awarding bursaries for students who could not fund themselves.

This new training course has played an important role in establishing clear standards and a career pathway for health advocates, and will continue

its work with support and funding from the North East London Strategic Health Authority.

The programme has also helped develop and funded advocacy standards and is now collaborating with Action for Advocacy on their new accreditation system. In September 2005 the King’s Fund is supporting the launch of a toolkit developed by Croydon primary care trust for black and minority ethnic advocacy organisations as a result of the programme’s work.

For further details visit:www.kingsfund.org.uk/funding/bme_advocacy.html

Connecting Communities Plus – Community Grants

Start date: 10/04/2006 Next application deadline: 05/07/2006 End date: 06/03/2009

Outline: Connecting Communities Plus is a grants programme designed to support practical action to help achieve the goals set out in ‘Improving Opportunity, Strengthening Society’, the government’s strategy to increase race equality and improve community cohesion. The programme follows the existing Connecting Communities grant programme which ended in March 2006. The grants will facilitate tailored initiatives to meet the specific needs of disadvantaged communities, rather than treating all BME communities in the same way. Community Grants are aimed at locally run and managed voluntary and community organisations with an

income of less than £50,000 per year, run by volunteers or with one full time or two part time paid staff.

Total Fund Value: £1,000,000 Grant Value – maximum: £12,000

Grant Value – notes: Most Grants will fall in the range shown above. The total fund value is the amount that will be distributed as community grants during 2006/07. The same amount will be distributed in further funding rounds during 2007/08 and 2008/09. All funding from this first round must be spent by 31st March 2007.

For further details visit:www.governmentfunding.org.uk/VCSSearch.aspx?WCI=htmschemeview&WCU=Grant_PKEY=83

Or the CDF at: www.cdf.org.uk

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Free materials from The Foundation for People With Learning Disabilities

The Foundation for People with Learning Disabilities has launched a set of free materials for parents from minority ethnic communities whose children have a learning disability.

Research has shown that language and cultural barriers can make it difficult for parents to communicate with services. The following booklets are available:

‘First Impressions’Emotional and practical support for families – a booklet written in Urdu for parents raising a small child with a learning disability, which aims to provide emotional and practical support.

‘Meeting the Emotional Needs of Young People with Learning Disabilities from Minority Ethnic Communities’This is an audio CD available in Urdu, Punjabi and Sylheti for parents raising teenagers with a learning disability.

Available from: www.learningdisabilities.org.uk

New information to help families with disabled children manage debt

According to research by charity Contact a Family, families with disabled children are more likely to be in debt than other families, because it costs up to three times more to raise a disabled child, and because average incomes for this group are almost one quarter below the UK mean.

It’s to help families in this situation that, thanks to funding from Her Majesty’s Revenue & Customs, the charity has produced two new factsheets; one targeted at families in England and Wales, and one for families in Northern Ireland.

These factsheets, entitled ‘Dealing with Debt’ for families with Disabled Children complement the charity’s information for families in Scotland, produced last year.

The factsheets are clear and easy to use, and set out the practical steps families can take to tackle their debts.

Firstly, they explain, you should list everything you owe; next, sort your debts into priority debts, ie. those with serious consequences like having your home repossessed, and non-priority debts, and then work out what you can afford to repay each week or month. A handy income and expenditure chart is included to help with this stage of the process.

Other sections explain the consequences of not repaying various types of debt, set out what steps creditors can take to enforce repayment, and outline the legal process. The factsheets also suggest ways of increasing household income, for instance, ensuring you claim for all benefits associated with caring for a disabled child. A benefits check from Contact a Family’s helpline can help with this.

Finally, the factsheets recommend that, if possible, people seek the help of a money adviser. Not only will an adviser help you draw up a repayment plan, but they can negotiate with

creditors on your behalf. A list of organisations providing this free and impartial service is included.

People can find confronting their debts difficult, but the worse thing they can do is leave them to pile up, said Mark Robertson, Contact a Family National Advice and Information Manager: “Our factsheets give people all the information they need to get their finances back on track and rid their lives of a major source of worry. We’d like to thank Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs for funding the production of these extremely useful factsheets.”

For copies of the ‘Dealing with Debt - for Families with Disabled Children’ factsheets, telephone Contact a Family’s helpline on 0808 808 3555, or email helpline@cafamily.org.uk. Factsheets can also be downloaded from www.cafamily.org.uk.

For further information contact: Louise Moffatt on 020 7608 8741, louise.moffatt@cafamily.org.uk.

Launch of Romany language website aims to save culture

A project was launched in January 2006 to preserve the endangered language and culture of one of the world’s most marginalised and maligned populations.

Romany is spoken by small groups in 42 European countries but since it has a largely oral tradition and those conversant in it are stateless and scattered, it has been driven to the brink of extinction, appearing on a list published by the University

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of Manchester of the world’s most threatened languages.

The university has transcribed the many Romany dialects for the first time, and the launched website allows people to locate different dialects on a world map and listen to examples of them.

It is hoped that this will help the Romany people to codify their language and agree on how words are spelt, as well as provide a resource ensuring the language is eventually included in the mainstream media and school curriculums. “We also hope it will inspire governments across Europe to develop policy in educational and cultural development,” said Professor Yaron Matras, who heads the Romany linguistics project at the university.

Many Romany lack access to computers, but those who do have discovered that they may at last communicate with compatriots as far apart as Norway and eastern Russia. Chatrooms for speakers of the language are beginning to flourish.

“In the UK, we are also discovering that Romany immigrants from central Europe are being approached by British Roma who have only a few words and asked for help,” said Professor Matras.

The website address is: www.llc.manahcester.ac.uk/Research/Projects/romani/

Taken from The Online Edition of The Independent

Faith in practice

Available on VHS or DVD. This resource can be obtained by contacting the Foundation for People with Learning Disabilities at the price of £12.50 including p&p. (It is free to people with learning disabilities and their families.)

To order your copy please telephone 0207 803 1101 or email publication@fpld.org.uk

For more information about the Foundation’s spirituality work visit: www.learningdisabilities.org.uk or call Marie Broad on 0207 803 1143.

CDPF – Useful Organisation for People with Disabilities In China

Information for Chinese people with disabilities.

www.cdpf.org.ch/english

Research AppealMENCAP Breaking Point Campaign

Does your family care for a child or an adult with severe, profound and multiple learning disabilities?

Do you live in the areas covered by Gateshead, Lancashire, Oxfordshire, Somerset, Surrey, or Wakefield borough or county councils?

Would you be willing to fill in a survey about your families experience of caring and whether or not to get short breaks? Mencap is conducting research in these areas in May 2006 and would love to hear from families who would be willing to take part in a short survey. This survey will look at what it’s like to be a family caring for a child or adult with severe, profound and multiple learning disabilities and the importance of short breaks to your family. This is part of the Breaking Point campaign.

For more information or to tell your family’s story please:E-mail: breakingpoint@mencap.org.uk Tel: Jane Keating on 0207 696 6952 Or visit: www.mencap.org.uk/breakingpoint

Anne BowenCampaigns Officer, Mencap123 Golden Lane, LondonEC1Y 0RTT: 0207 696 6021 (direct)anne.bowen@mencap.org.uk

Cultural Competence in Family Support: A Toolkit for Black, Minority Ethnic and Faith FamiliesFatima Husain

This Toolkit is a clearly presented set of practical materials to help practitioners working with Britain’s marginalised and/or racialised families in need.

It covers the legislative framework; developments in social work theories, in particular the Culturally Competent Family Support model; and explores the meanings in practice of culture, family, discrimination and working in partnership. There are in-depth factsheets on the major religions, and sets of guidelines on communication, working with clients, discrimination and more.

The Toolkit’s aim is to improve the quality of outcome for families, and it will be invaluable for all those working with families who are marginalised due to ethnicity, faith, class or literacy.

NFPI Publications, 47 Water Street, Lavenham, Sudbury, Suffolk CO10 9RNTel: 01787 249 287www.nfpi.org

ISBN 1 903615 39 9Price: £29.00

Working to Sustain PracticeEleanor Stanley

In recent years the NHS has made significant progress in increasing the number of non-executive directors (NEDs) from black and minority

ethnic (BME) communities, as part of a wider move to reflect diversity at all levels of NHS organisations. Drawing on the findings of two surveys and interviews with individuals involved in the field, this paper explores the current situation for NEDs from BME communities in London’s NHS trusts and health authorities. It examines their experiences, levels of satisfaction and impressions of the impact of organisational changes, and asks what can be done to ensure BME representation among NEDs is sustained.

www.kingsfund.org.uk/resources/publications/working_to.html

ISBN 1 85717 545Price: £5.00

Beyond the Silence: My Life, The World and AutismTito Rajarshi Mukhopadhyay

Tito is an 11-year-old boy from south India with a special talent – and autism. Although almost completely non-verbal, he can communicate his thoughts and feelings through remarkable prose and poetry, written in fluent English. He explains how he deals with this hidden disability.

Published by The National Autistic Society, 2000,

Tito’s story can be obtained from The National Autistic Society 2006 publications cataloguewww.nas.org.uk/nas/jsp/polopoly.jsp?d=418

Tel: 0207 903 3595Email: publications@nas.org.uk

112 pp, paperback(Code NAS 113) ISBN 1 899280 31 6Price: £7.99

Ibrahim: Where in the Spectrum Does He Belong?Shahidun N Rahman

Ibrahim, now at secondary school, is growing up in a traditional Bengali family in England and has Semantic Pragmatic Language Disorder. His mother’s story of the family’s struggle to get him the help he needs offers fascinating insights.

Published by Perfect Publishers, 2005, and available from the National Autistic Society.

112 pp, A5,paperback (Code NAS 542) ISBN 1 905399 05 7Price: £7.99

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