Implications for Policy and Practice

Abstract

This final chapter attempts to draw out of the nine substantive chapters implications for policy and practice with respect to the Black African population. Firstly, we ask what kind of ethnicity data is needed for policy and practice, focusing on the limitations of current census categorisations. Quality issues concerning the reproducibility of the data, concealed heterogeneity under the hegemonic banner ‘Black African’, and concealment of the category in an aggregate ‘Black’ group all pose challenges in research and policy analysis. Legal and policy frameworks have not adequately addressed racism that has become embedded in British life and continues to be one of the major contributors to health and other social inequalities. The policy implications of racism and disadvantage in the labour market, housing market, health and healthcare, social care, and living in deprived neighbourhoods are explored. Secondly, the UK’s policy towards asylum seekers and the introduction of increasingly restrictive policies concerning migrants are assessed in the context of the increasing number of migrants from the Middle East and Africa making the journey across the Mediterranean and into Europe. Finally, the chapter addresses the diversity of preferences and needs associated with the Black African population that may be different from mainstream expectations and the need for respect for these differences.