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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Limiting MH support to certain cultural areas?

1000 replies

Mindcultural · 17/02/2026 18:48

I have today received this message below from a mental health support service for young people.

AIBU to think it’s completely wrong to offer support based on cultural diversity and would like to know how they decide who fits this criteria?

Hi,

I’m getting touch as you have recently made a referral to our Youth In Mind services on behalf of a child or young person.

Unfortunately, we are having to reduce the size of the team for funding reasons, so we now only have funding to support young people from culturally diverse communities, if this is relevant for the individual you referred to us, please can I ask that you complete this form forms.office.com and we will be back in touch accordingly.

If we are now no longer able to offer support to the individual you have made a referral for, please accept our apologies for this. Please feel free to keep an eye on our website for updated information regarding available services as we are always looking for new funding opportunities to allow us to reach more children and young people.

Limiting MH support to certain cultural areas?
OP posts:
Thread gallery
11
FurForksSake · 17/02/2026 22:42

Why would services be harder to navigate for non-white young people?

Well, I cannot speak for them but research suggests
-stigma
lack of representation
peer pressure
poor cultural understanding
fear
institutional racism
greater needs not being met
adultification

Im sure there are many more nuanced issues.

Equity in services is needed, a project that encourages those to engage through peer support and youth led services helps to change the narrative.

MissAustenMadeAQuilt · 17/02/2026 22:42

sexnotgenders · 17/02/2026 19:00

Because they clearly want to prioritise black and brown British children with what limited resources they now have.

Or are those kids not considered ‘British’ enough for you, OP

But if they're British, then why does the colour of the skin matter at all? Does being brown or black make them more or less British?

For those who are saying that this piece of crap will appear in a Reform pamphlet, well so it bloody well should and shame on every other political party that it doesn't appear in theirs.

nomas · 17/02/2026 22:43

nearlylovemyusername · 17/02/2026 22:37

Ok, HAWWC Boys Research Project — CREC

This is RESEARCH project. They don't provide any service at all. They work with a few families to understand what made their kids successful. No different to testing women only to improve pregnancy treatments (yes, I'm gender critical).
Quite different to any ord, charity included, denying service to a group based on their race.

Did you misunderstand HAWWC project or was deliberate?

Edited

Look at the section on ‘What we do’ and ‘Partnerships’, it goes beyond ‘working with a few families’.

Allisnotlost1 · 17/02/2026 22:44

Cucumberino · 17/02/2026 22:35

I am up in arms about this. Why wouldn’t I be? I’m not a frothing racist, I believe in equality. OP has clearly been racially discriminated against and you ‘charitable’ people are cool with that. Shocking.

If you’re gender critical then you believe it’s right to provide services to some, and exclude others, on the basis of the protected characteristic of sex, yes? Because you recognise that at times people need separate and different services that meet their needs.

But you don’t think that applies to the protected characteristic of race and ethnicity?

ETA now I’m wondering if it was you who said.they were gender critical.

nomas · 17/02/2026 22:44

FurForksSake · 17/02/2026 22:42

Why would services be harder to navigate for non-white young people?

Well, I cannot speak for them but research suggests
-stigma
lack of representation
peer pressure
poor cultural understanding
fear
institutional racism
greater needs not being met
adultification

Im sure there are many more nuanced issues.

Equity in services is needed, a project that encourages those to engage through peer support and youth led services helps to change the narrative.

Thanks, this person is not interested in answers.

wrongthinker · 17/02/2026 22:44

Itsmetheflamingo · 17/02/2026 22:31

I’ve given a few- the majority of sections of black men being in the back of a police car for one. Only a minority of white male sectioned patients are.

can you really not see that something has gone wrong for it to end there?

Is that happening because of racism, or because more black men are behaving in dangerous ways in public (hence being in the back of a police car in the first place)? Is it that both white and black males are behaving dangerously, being picked up by police, but only black males are getting sectioned?

I'm not saying it's one or the other. I don't know.

I'm not necessarily against people being sectioned in emergency situations, either. Sometimes it's the safest thing for everyone concerned. You could spin it to say 'fewer white people are getting emergency mental health interventions.' I think that would be disingenuous, but I just mean, relying on concepts like 'stealth' discrimination and 'unconscious bias' doesn't lead to much clarity.

Anonanonnona · 17/02/2026 22:48

MrsChristmasHasResigned · 17/02/2026 21:50

Where is your ethical concern when it comes to systemic inequality and poorer health outcomes for certain ethnic groups?

Did you know that white people have the lowest life expectancy in the uk of any racial group? I’d love to know what initiatives there are to reduce the barriers white people clearly face in accessing healthcare

Itsmetheflamingo · 17/02/2026 22:49

wrongthinker · 17/02/2026 22:44

Is that happening because of racism, or because more black men are behaving in dangerous ways in public (hence being in the back of a police car in the first place)? Is it that both white and black males are behaving dangerously, being picked up by police, but only black males are getting sectioned?

I'm not saying it's one or the other. I don't know.

I'm not necessarily against people being sectioned in emergency situations, either. Sometimes it's the safest thing for everyone concerned. You could spin it to say 'fewer white people are getting emergency mental health interventions.' I think that would be disingenuous, but I just mean, relying on concepts like 'stealth' discrimination and 'unconscious bias' doesn't lead to much clarity.

You don’t know, but that doesn’t stop you randomly throwing out scenarios and asking me to explain why they are not true to you.

Rather than accepting, as is fairly obvious, that’s it’s an inequality.

or, your idea, that black men in mental health crisis, who are psychotic and disassociated from reality, use that opportunity to commit crime, yet white men in exactly the same situation don’t. Does that sounds plausible to you? 🤔

nomas · 17/02/2026 22:50

wrongthinker · 17/02/2026 22:44

Is that happening because of racism, or because more black men are behaving in dangerous ways in public (hence being in the back of a police car in the first place)? Is it that both white and black males are behaving dangerously, being picked up by police, but only black males are getting sectioned?

I'm not saying it's one or the other. I don't know.

I'm not necessarily against people being sectioned in emergency situations, either. Sometimes it's the safest thing for everyone concerned. You could spin it to say 'fewer white people are getting emergency mental health interventions.' I think that would be disingenuous, but I just mean, relying on concepts like 'stealth' discrimination and 'unconscious bias' doesn't lead to much clarity.

It took just a few seconds to google it.

www.mind.org.uk/about-us/our-policy-work/mental-health-act-reform/independent-review-of-the-mental-health-act-faqs/mental-health-act-blog-series/race-and-mental-health-tipping-the-scale/

nearlylovemyusername · 17/02/2026 22:50

nomas · 17/02/2026 22:43

Look at the section on ‘What we do’ and ‘Partnerships’, it goes beyond ‘working with a few families’.

I did. Did you?

CREC is a values led organisation, dedicated to improving outcomes for all young children, particularly those facing disadvantages.

CREC is an internationally recognised leader in early childhood education delivering a wide range of research projects, professional development courses, consultancy, conferences, networking links and publication opportunities for the early childhood sector.

It's a research focused organisation, they don't provide support to individuals, and HAWWC is only one of their many projects.

Do you have any other examples? where a specific group is denied service based on their race?

nomas · 17/02/2026 22:50

Anonanonnona · 17/02/2026 22:48

Did you know that white people have the lowest life expectancy in the uk of any racial group? I’d love to know what initiatives there are to reduce the barriers white people clearly face in accessing healthcare

Why don’t you set up a charity for it?

surrealpotato · 17/02/2026 22:51

Anyahyacinth · 17/02/2026 21:28

Rubbish as has been said many times traveller children would be eligible, Ukrainian children would be eligible and many more ..it is not about skin colour

Of course it is. The direct result of policies like this is the exclusion of most white people.

Allisnotlost1 · 17/02/2026 22:52

wrongthinker · 17/02/2026 22:44

Is that happening because of racism, or because more black men are behaving in dangerous ways in public (hence being in the back of a police car in the first place)? Is it that both white and black males are behaving dangerously, being picked up by police, but only black males are getting sectioned?

I'm not saying it's one or the other. I don't know.

I'm not necessarily against people being sectioned in emergency situations, either. Sometimes it's the safest thing for everyone concerned. You could spin it to say 'fewer white people are getting emergency mental health interventions.' I think that would be disingenuous, but I just mean, relying on concepts like 'stealth' discrimination and 'unconscious bias' doesn't lead to much clarity.

So you’ve asked a question, been provided with examples of inequity - clues are things like ‘disproportionate’ and ‘with the same symptoms’ - and yet you still think maybe it’s a good thing that black people are sectioned more often.

Being sectioned can save someone’s life, but very often there are de/escalation or interventions that should happen way before that which don’t carry the same calamitous consequences for the individual (or cost the state so much money). Black men are less likely to receive those. And by virtue of being sectioned, they’re more likely to die under restraint. Again, not because they’re inherently more dangerous, but because of persistent and wrong beliefs about their strength, or pain or drug tolerance.

Its fine not to know things, but when people share information go and read up on it and learn, if you’re interested. Don’t just say ‘well I don’t know, it might be wrong’.

nomas · 17/02/2026 22:52

nearlylovemyusername · 17/02/2026 22:50

I did. Did you?

CREC is a values led organisation, dedicated to improving outcomes for all young children, particularly those facing disadvantages.

CREC is an internationally recognised leader in early childhood education delivering a wide range of research projects, professional development courses, consultancy, conferences, networking links and publication opportunities for the early childhood sector.

It's a research focused organisation, they don't provide support to individuals, and HAWWC is only one of their many projects.

Do you have any other examples? where a specific group is denied service based on their race?

HAWWC is a project funded by the government specifically and solely for young, white working class boys.

Minnie2012 · 17/02/2026 22:52

Cucumberino · 17/02/2026 22:25

I think you’ll find if you’ve worked in mental health funding for 13 years you’ll be steeped in prejudices and anti-white-NT-middle-class-heterosexual-‘cis’-discrimination.

No, funnily enough an ability to read and process information is a requirement of the role. Not suitable for you, clearly.

I’ll leave you in the hands of the other well-informed posters, who’ve attempted to help you understand this radically simple issue. Enjoy your ignorance evening.

Itsmetheflamingo · 17/02/2026 22:52

nomas · 17/02/2026 22:50

Why don’t you set up a charity for it?

I think what would be easier for the poster rather than setting up a charity and running it, is to set up a grant and award it to an existing charity to execute, just like the donors did to MIND. About £1.3m should make a decent dent in it.

Anonanonnona · 17/02/2026 22:53

nomas · 17/02/2026 22:50

Why don’t you set up a charity for it?

Because I would see that as racist.

Allisnotlost1 · 17/02/2026 22:53

surrealpotato · 17/02/2026 22:51

Of course it is. The direct result of policies like this is the exclusion of most white people.

The project for white young people is full. White young people are being catered for.

Pistachiocake · 17/02/2026 22:54

Mindcultural · 17/02/2026 18:59

Someone on my social media asked if I was sure it wasn’t some reform crap being circulated but I received it personally from the support service.

I am so sorry. Everyone is (or should be) of equal value. Mental health affects everyone, and I'm sorry that your "friend" on socials asked that. More than one person in my family has had comments implying they're more "sensitive" than white people, because they needed MH support, specifically anxiety, but it's terrible that some people still imply white people are less likely to suffer from anxiety (and yes, the comments were made recently).

HildegardP · 17/02/2026 22:56

Locutus2000 · 17/02/2026 18:55

It's a charity and they have been forced to tighten their eligibility criteria due to funding issues.

It's happening everywhere.

As you say, it's a charity & charities are obliged to conform to their Governing Documents, which lay out their purpose & objectives, & to the Equality Act.
I am not at all convinced that the splendidly fluffy-minded, "from diverse backgrounds" won't drag this amateurishly-led & increasingly ineffectual charity into some hot water.

wrongthinker · 17/02/2026 22:56

Itsmetheflamingo · 17/02/2026 22:49

You don’t know, but that doesn’t stop you randomly throwing out scenarios and asking me to explain why they are not true to you.

Rather than accepting, as is fairly obvious, that’s it’s an inequality.

or, your idea, that black men in mental health crisis, who are psychotic and disassociated from reality, use that opportunity to commit crime, yet white men in exactly the same situation don’t. Does that sounds plausible to you? 🤔

Well, first of all, I certainly didn't say that any psychotic person was using their psychosis as an opportunity to commit crime. That's an egregious misreading of what I actually wrote and makes me wonder if you are intellectually capable of following an argument at all?

Secondly, you miss my point. You are the one throwing out scenarios and claiming that the obvious reason for any disparity in treatment is racism.

Meanwhile, actual open racism, such as described in the OP, is dismissed as white people complaining about non-white people getting help. So, also racist.

So in your world, every disparity of outcome is driven by racism, except when it negatively affects white people, in which case it is white people being racist about being negatively affected. Which they deserve anyway, because they're white.

TempestTost · 17/02/2026 22:57

I agree OP this is not OK.

And I don't understand why people who are pointing to the funding - accurately I am sure - seem to think that makes it ok.

Yes, a charitable donor can give money for what they like. That does not mean it is necessarily ok for a service provider to accept the money on those terms. I work for an organisation that applies for grants all the time - some aren't ok because they don't align with the principles our service provision are based on.

I think what has happened is that because of the way grants applications have become so fundamental, people who are in the business of trying to wrack their brains to figure out how to take advantage of available money lose sight of the fact that they are being asked to do something that is in many cases really problematic.

It's also a problem where people have learned, largely from American imported lobbing and theoretical bs, to think in a way that is riddled with errors around the interpretation of statistics and is directly opposed to equalities legislation.

Because here is the thing - you can find that a particular group, lets say people of Caribbean origin, are statistically, as a group, more likely to suffer from trauma or MH issues, or more likely for some reason to have a problem accessing services, than another group, lets say Asians, or white people, as a group.

And that can be useful if it helps you to find out why there is a gap. Maybe you try correlating for poverty and you find it's because they are more likely, as a group, to be poor. Maybe it is because they are less likely to have good transport. iOr dozens of other reasons, some might . And if some reasons are specific to that group - maybe there are cultural barriers around fear of doctors for women, say - you might want to address that issue which is very specific to that community in a direct way.

But here is the thing, if you have an well educated and very well off Caribbean woman (my SIL for example) she is not having a problem accessing services because she is "diverse", on the contrary, she is better off than many other people in the country. And a poor, white woman with no education, who can't drive, is far more likely to struggle to access services, and more likely to have MH issues too.

So are people seriously comfortable with offering her services rather than the other woman, because some abstract group called "diverse people" are more likely to be marginalised? Rights, including the right not to be discriminated against, adhere in individuals. Not in groups. And individuals are protected not only if they are in a minority or a marginalised group, all individuals are protected against access to public services on the basis of race. It is meant to be on the basis of need.

And here is the really brilliant thing. If services are offered on the basis of need, and we really try to make that happen, it means the people who may be most likely to have health issues, who are often poor or marginalised, but not always, will be the ones who are most often accessing those services.

Offering a rich Asian kid counselling services over a poor white kid is racism and it's fucking awful. You can't justify it on the basis of statistics about abstract entities. It's gross and it's infected the political left and made them, in many cases, as bad as any of the scientific racists of the late 19th century. And it's destroyed political life in the US and on the way to doing the same in other places.

The only way to stop it, imo, is to make sure organisations aren't allowed to discriminate by accessing funds in this way. It might suck short term but it would ultimately force a new approach.

Allisnotlost1 · 17/02/2026 22:59

Anonanonnona · 17/02/2026 22:48

Did you know that white people have the lowest life expectancy in the uk of any racial group? I’d love to know what initiatives there are to reduce the barriers white people clearly face in accessing healthcare

This is an interesting piece of data, and I do know some people who are working on it. The problem is that the findings comes from a specific time period and isn’t borne out in later published data, so it’s hard to investigate. Suicide also much more common among white men than other ethnicities. The world is complex and that’s why we can’t treat all people the same. But it’s still the case that access and experience is worse for people of some (not all) ‘not white’ ethnicities.

nomas · 17/02/2026 23:00

Anonanonnona · 17/02/2026 22:53

Because I would see that as racist.

So is the project funded specifically to help young white working class boys and their families racist too then?

TempestTost · 17/02/2026 23:01

FurForksSake · 17/02/2026 22:42

Why would services be harder to navigate for non-white young people?

Well, I cannot speak for them but research suggests
-stigma
lack of representation
peer pressure
poor cultural understanding
fear
institutional racism
greater needs not being met
adultification

Im sure there are many more nuanced issues.

Equity in services is needed, a project that encourages those to engage through peer support and youth led services helps to change the narrative.

Maybe, but offering counselling services only to "diverse" kids (which is a stupid thing to say, no individual is diverse, or they all are,) does nothing to change those things.

The number one reason is always wealth.

But even where there is a culturally specific reason, offering standard counselling services only to certain groups does nothing to change any of those things. It's basically trying to fudge the numbers by allowing fewer kids who are not in the target group to get through.

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