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Surrey and Borders Partnership NHS Foundation Trust Charity has received funding from The John Ede Trust to support a project aimed at improving access to life-saving cancer screening for people with learning disabilities.

The funding has enabled the Trust’s Learning Disability Liaison Team to purchase specialist education tools including breast self-check training kits and screening education resources - to help people with learning disabilities better understand breast checks and cervical smear screenings.

Evidence from the Learning from Lives and Deaths - people with a learning disability and autistic people review (LeDeR) shows that people with learning disabilities experience significant health inequalities and are more likely to receive later cancer diagnoses. Barriers such as fear, inaccessible information and services not always making reasonable adjustments can prevent people from 
attending routine screening appointments.

These new resources will allow staff to provide practical, hands-on education sessions in community settings, reducing A&E attendances and helping individuals feel more confident and informed about what to expect from screening.

By making these important health checks easier to understand and less intimidating, the project aims to improve screening uptake, support earlier diagnosis and ultimately reduce avoidable health inequalities.

The charity is grateful to The John Ede Trust for supporting this work and helping ensure people with learning disabilities receive the same opportunities for early diagnosis and treatment as everyone else.