A BETTER LIFE FOR DISADVANTAGED ETHNIC MINORITIES?
(22 November 2004)

A new project to improve the life chances of disadvantaged adults - including disabled people and those with long term health conditions, people with poor basic skills and some ethnic minority groups - was launched today by Jeff Rooker, Social Exclusion Minister in the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister (ODPM). Improving service delivery for disadvantaged adults will consider why these groups are least likely to benefit from the services that could help them and identify how the barriers can be overcome.

The Social Exclusion Unit (SEU) report, Breaking the Cycle, published in September 2004, identified these groups as being most likely to suffer disadvantage. For example:

· Adults with poor basic skills are up to five times more likely to be unemployed or out of the labour market altogether;

· Thirty per cent of disabled people of working age have no qualifications whatsoever, compared to only 12 per cent of those without a disability;

· Infant mortality for children of Afro-Caribbean and Pakistani mothers is 100 per cent higher than for children of white mothers.

Announcing the consultation period for the project, Social Exclusion Minister Jeff Rooker said: "The adults in greatest need are too often the least likely to benefit from the services and benefits they are entitled to. The Government is committed to making services work better for all, including the most disadvantaged, who need access to services such as training, employment, housing or healthcare, to improve their opportunities in life.

"This new SEU project will look at those groups who we know are not always being reached. In some cases this can have a dramatic impact on an individual's life chances. It is unacceptable that a child's chance of surviving infancy can vary wildly depending on the ethnic origin of its mother, or that a person with poor basic skills cannot access services because filling out the necessary forms is a barrier.

The Unit is seeking views from staff and organisations who deliver services to disadvantaged adults, as well as people from any of the three key groups who have personal experience of using public services, or organisations that represent these groups. Findings from the consultation will inform the next stage of this project - working in partnership with service providers as they test new ways to deliver services.

Top