Communities urged to speak out to ensure they get the fertility services they need

Hundreds of thousands of people from across Great Britain's minority ethnic communities have problems starting a family.

People from minority ethnic communities across Great Britain are being urged to make their voice heard on the fertility services they receive by the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority ? the UK's Fertility regulator ? as new figures showing that hundreds of thousands of people from these communities are having difficulty starting a family.

Estimates based on the most recent census break down the numbers of people having problem conceiving as:

• 136,000 Asian people (including Indian, Pakistani and Bangladeshi)
• 68,000 Black people (including Caribbean and African)
• 16,500 Chinese people

and many thousands more from other ethnic groups (a full breakdown is below)

The HFEA's role as the UK's Fertility Regulator is to ensure that the fertility services people receive are safe and appropriate for them. We are asking people who are having, have had, or are thinking about fertility treatment to join our online patients panel Fertility Views to help us to improve the quality of fertility services in the UK. People can join the panel by going to Fertility views.

Vishnee Sauntoo, of the HFEA's Equality and Diversity working group, explained:

"Our job is to make sure that the fertility treatment people receive is safe and appropriate to them. One of the most important ways we can do this is to listen to the people who have been through fertility treatment or are starting to think about it.

"One in seven couples in the UK have some problem conceiving which adds up to hundreds of thousands of people across the UK's minority ethnic communities.

"We know that infertility is a difficult and emotional experience and this can be even more difficult if people feel unable to talk about the problem to those close to them. Even though fertility problems are quite common, people can feel that they are a failure if they are having trouble getting pregnant. It can be even more difficult when friends and other family members around them are having children, particularly within those communities that place a strong value on family life.

"We are concerned to make sure that people undergoing fertility treatment receive services that are safe, appropriate and sensitive to their needs. We want people who have experienced treatment, or are currently looking at having treatment, to sign up to our anonymous and confidential patients' panel to help us make services better for themselves and others in the future.

"The HFEA's Equality and Diversity group are looking at HFEA practices and policies and the information we provide to patients to ensure that we reach all ethnic groups. Part of the group's work is to look at the best ways of reaching all fertility patients and those who are thinking of fertility treatment."

Ends

Estimates of people with fertility problems

Great Britain

	People with fertility problems
White	2,970,000
White British	2,840,000
White Irish	42,500
Other White	95,600
Mixed	28,200
Asian or Asian British	136,000
Indian	65,800
Pakistani	40,400
Bangladeshi	14,600
Other Asian	15,600
Black or Black British	68,800
Black Caribbean	34,600
Black African	29,100
Other Black	5,080
Chinese or Other	32,300
Chinese	16,500
Any other ethnic group	15,800
All non-White groups	266,000

This information is based on ethnicity classifications and data from 2001 census. These estimates are based on one in seven people between 18 and 45 having problems conceiving naturally. Figures are not available for Northern Ireland.

Notes to editors

The HFEA is the independent regulator for IVF treatment and embryo research. Our role is to protect patients and the public interest, to drive improvement in the treatment and research sectors and to provide information to the public and policymakers about treatment and research.

The HFEA was set up in August 1991 as part of the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 1990.  The HFEA's principal tasks are to license and monitor clinics that carry out in vitro fertilisation (IVF), donor insemination (DI) and human embryo research. The HFEA also regulates the storage of gametes (eggs and sperm) and embryos.

For further information please contact the HFEA press office