Minority ethnic women in the North of England face a lifetime of inequalities that stretch from childhood and maternity care to employment, mental health and later life, according to a new report co-authored by Lancaster University.
The report, "Woman of the North: closing the health gap for minority ethnic women" published by Health Equity North, found that racial discrimination, poverty and regional underinvestment combine to produce significantly worse outcomes in the North than elsewhere in England, while major gaps in data continue to conceal the full scale of the problem.
However, data shows that, despite the health challenges and barriers minority ethnic women face, they have higher life expectancy levels than White people (83.1 years). For Asian women, life expectancy is 86.9 years, 87.3 years for Bangladeshi women, 88.9 years for Black African women, 84.6 years for Black Caribbean and 86.9 years for other minority ethnic groups.
Lancaster Professor of Health Inequalities Heather Brown contributed to Chapter 6: Regional Ethnic Inequalities in Employment Status.
She said: "This report highlights some of the challenges facing ethnic minority women in the North of England compared to the rest of UK highlighting areas where future policies can be developed to reduce inequalities."
Findings include:
- Employment among Asian women in the North West is 49%, while it is only 56% of Black women, compared with 72% of White women. Due to limited data, a full comparison of employment or economic inactivity across ethnic groups was not always possible across all regions.
- Minority ethnic women in the North of England face worse labour market outcomes than women elsewhere, despite more than 70 initiatives over the last decade to boost economic activity in these groups.
- Black babies in the North face substantially higher neonatal mortality than White babies. In the North West, neonatal unit mortality was 29.9 per 1,000 babies admitted among babies born to Black women, compared with 18.4 per 1,000 among babies born to White women - around 1.6 times higher.
- Black and Asian people are twice as likely to be in poverty than White people, with over three times as many experiencing persistent poverty.
- 45% of minority ethnic women report having experienced online abuse, and technology is increasingly documented as a coercive tool deployed within honour-based or community-monitoring contexts.
- Women from minority ethnic groups are more likely to be arrested, serve longer sentences and receive disparate treatment in Magistrates' Court decisions including pleas and remand decisions, compared to White people
The report highlights the exceptional work already being led by voluntary, community, faith, and social enterprise organisations to challenge inequalities, build trust and provide culturally responsive support.
The new report is the first in a series on Woman of the North reports, and follows the flagship report, released in 2024, which showed how northern women live shorter lives, work more hours for less pay, are more likely to be an unpaid carer, and more likely to live in poverty than women in other regions of England.
Hannah Davies, Executive Director of Health Equity North and CEO of the Northern Health Science Alliance, said: "This report paints a difficult picture for the health of women from minority ethnic groups in the North of England across the life course.
"Our recommendations include sustained investment, shared accountability and coordinated action across government, community groups and the NHS to scale what works and deliver lasting improvement - because we know change is possible.
"Interventions such as the Government's announcement that the NHS will take a public health approach to violence against women and girls is a significant step. This is particularly important for minority ethnic women, who may face culturally specific abuse and additional barriers."
