The UN Committee on the Rights of the Child has identified lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) young people as a vulnerable group and called on the government to do something about it (CYP Now, 8-14 October).
LGBT young people have been left out of all other strategies for young people and it is my belief that until they are identified as "vulnerable" in national strategies, local authorities will continue to either ignore them or provide inappropriate services for them.
While the government has published guidelines on homophobic bullying in schools, I do not believe all schools will genuinely tackle the issue until a duty is placed on public bodies to do so. The Single Equality Bill, due to be included in the Queen's Speech in November, will include this duty but it is unlikely to become law until 2010. Meanwhile, more LGBT young people are at risk of homophobic abuse, resulting in high levels of substance misuse and mental health problems, including suicide.
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