The 2023 "Learning from Lives and Deaths - people with a learning disability and autistic people" (LeDeR), which investigates deaths in UK adults with a learning disability in an effort to provide learning for the future and improve care, was presented to Parliament (2 September 2025).
A copy of the main report and accessible materials can be found on the LeDeR webpage.
The report, which is led by researchers at the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience at King's College London, in partnership with the University of Central Lancashire, and Kingston University London, is produced on behalf of NHS England.
This report analysed the deaths of 3,556 people, notified between January and December 2023, and established a number of findings.
The percentage of "avoidable deaths" - where death occurs in someone under the age of 75 to a condition deemed preventable, treatable, or both - has fallen from 46 per cent in 2021 to 39 per cent in 2023.
Professor Andre Strydom, the report's Chief Investigator and a Professor in Intellectual Disabilities said, "Our analysis of this year's data has once again established that the number of avoidable deaths in people with a learning disability has fallen. While this improvement is undeniably heartening, we cannot overlook the context, as the rate is almost double that of avoidable deaths in the general population (21 per cent)."
The analysis also found that 37 per cent of cases reported some form of delay in care or treatment, while 28 percent reported instances where diagnosis and treatment guidelines were not met.
"Our analysis shows that there has been progress in some areas, but there is also a need for ongoing reporting of deaths of people with a learning disability and autistic people, and for initiatives such as annual health checks and support when people are admitted to hospital to reduce avoidable deaths."
Professor Andre Strydom, the report's Chief Investigator and a Professor in Intellectual Disabilities
The analysis also found that 37 per cent of cases reported some form of delay in care or treatment, while 28 percent reported instances where diagnosis and treatment guidelines were not met.
This year's report placed a greater focus on the deaths of people with a learning disability from ethnic minority backgrounds, and those who had died and had a severe or profound learning disability.
Researchers found that, compared to those coming from White backgrounds, those from minority ethnic backgrounds had a significantly lower median age of death. Between January 2021 and December 2023, the median age of death in those from Asian and Asian British backgrounds reported a median age of death of 43 - a 20 year difference when compared to those from White backgrounds.
Further analysis found that, where 44 percent of people from White backgrounds were aged 65 and above when their deaths were reported, the same percentage of people from Asian backgrounds were in the 24 - 49 age category.
Researchers also analysed the data available for people with a severe or profound learning disability, approximately one third of the reported cases since 2021 fall into this category. Analysis established that those individuals have a younger median age of death (57 vs 64) and are more likely to have a treatable cause of death due to conditions such as pneumonia or seizures, while those with mild or moderate learning disability were more likely to have preventable causes of death, such as those related to heart disease or cancer.
The report includes an analysis of deaths among autistic adults without a learning disability. While it shows that mental health issues were a prominent concern for many autistic people, researchers stress the need for continued data collection to improve the understanding of mortality among autistic adults.
Dr Rory Sheehan, Senior Clinical Lecturer and one of the report's authors said, "Although the LeDeR annual report includes a limited number of reviews of the deaths of autistic adults, the data underscore the need to ensure timely access to good quality mental health support adapted to the needs of this group.
"LeDeR data continues to be important in demonstrating the health inequities people with a learning disability and autistic people experience and pressing the need for change."
A copy of the main report and accessible materials can be found on the LeDeR webpage.
