KN BAME Talks - Mental health in BAME children and young people with Leethen Bartholomew, Barnardo's

In this episode of KN BAME Talks, Leethen Bartholomew, Head of the National FGM Centre at Barnardo's and Head of Boloh (The Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic family Covid-19 Helpline) and Sameera Abdulrehman, Paralegal in our Public Law Team speak about mental health in BAME children and young people.

Further information

As a firm, we have had many discussions about BAME and Black Lives Matter and how we can make a difference to the movement. We wanted to do more than just put out a statement of support - we wanted to take substantive action to address the inequalities faced by Black people and other ethnic minorities. As part of this, we are publishing a series of blogs from our varying practice areas highlighting what we are doing, how you can make a difference and shining a light on the issues. The blog series can be found here.

We have published further podcasts and blogs on positive representation. Please check our website, Twitter or our Diversity Matters Blog for the latest updates.

1. Podcast episode 1 - Positive representation in the tech industry with Ash Cooper
2. Podcast episode 2 - Jamie Gash and Arvin Rajendram on intersectionality

ABOUT Sameera Abdulrehman

Sameera Abdulrehman is a Paralegal in our Public Law Team. Sameera has assisted partners and associates in the Public, Criminal, and Regulatory teams on high profile public inquests and inquiries such as the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse, Scottish Child Abuse Inquiry, and regulatory work involving the FCA.

ABout Leethen Bartholomew

Leethen Bartholomew joined Barnardo’s in December 2017 as the Head of the National FGM Centre. In addition to this role, he is also the head of Boloh: The Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic family Covid-19 Helpline. As the Head of Boloh Helpline, Leethen leads on ensuring this unique and first service of it’s kind in the UK meets the needs of those disproportionately affected by the pandemic. 

Leethen first worked in probation for a number of years and then went into frontline social work. This experience enabled Leethen to take on a leading role with a London Safeguarding Children Partnership where he became an adviser to practitioners working on cases related to culture and faith and harmful practices. Leethen then went on to work for the Social Care Institute for Excellence where he worked on a project auditing the Church of England’s safeguarding arrangements.