LGBT Health and Social Care Fund

Please note this is a grant and the scope is for England only. We are seeking to fund up to £1,000,000 of projects aimed at tackling LGBT health inequality. The Fund is in response to evidence that lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans individuals not only have poorer health when compared to the wider population, but also report poorer interaction with health services. GEO commissioned the National Institute of Economic and Social Research (NIESR) to synthesise evidence on inequalities experienced by lesbian, gay bisexual and transgender groups in the UK. One section of the report focuses explicitly on health inequalities. It also draws on research published by Public Health England (PHE) on the health inequalities faced by men who have sex with men. The research by NIESR found that: • There is evidence of inequalities in health outcomes, with LGB people's general health worse than that of heterosexual people. • Higher rates of mental health problems amongst LGB people, compared with heterosexual people. Mental health problems included attempted suicide, self-harm, anxiety and depression, but extended to probably psychosis, obsessive compulsive disorders (OCD) and phobias. Mental health services were most often perceived to be discriminatory by LGB people. • Other than in respect of HIV and men's sexual health, LGB&T people's experience of health provision is less good compared with heterosexual people's and cisgender people's experiences and also, where needs differ between LGBT and other people, there are gaps in NHS staff's knowledge and provision. • Evidence suggests that the sexual health of lesbians and bisexual women is neglected, both in terms of prevention of sexually transmitted diseases and of sexual fulfilment. • Dissatisfaction with health services is higher amongst LGB people than heterosexual people. The National LGBT Survey (of 108,000 respondents) found that large numbers of LGBT respondents had difficulty accessing healthcare services and especially gender identity clinics. It also showed many respondents had experienced inappropriate questioning and curiosity relating to their sexual orientation or gender identity from healthcare staff, and that some respondents felt their specific needs were ignored or not taken into account when accessing healthcare. In light of the strong evidence base on the health inequalities experienced by LGBT people, the Government will fund projects to reduce these health inequalities. We are not specifying what area of LGBT health inequality should be tackled by the fund. Projects could consider issues that affect the whole LGBT population, such as reducing suicide or self-harm; or be aimed at specific sub-sets of the LGBT population, such as improving the health of lesbian and bisexual women. Projects could also focus on improving the skills or knowledge of the health or social care workforce, such as working with older LGBT people specifically (proposals are not limited to these areas).