Michael Baron obituary

The London solicitor Michael Baron, who has died aged 96, was instrumental in changing the lives of autistic people for the better. At a time when autism was little known or understood, in 1962 he co-founded the UK’s leading autistic charity. As its first chair, he was the driving force in publicising the condition and raising funds.He helped set up the world’s first autism-specific school in 1965 and the first residential community for autistic adults in 1974. As one of a group of lawyers, he campaigned for the Education (Handicapped Children) Act in 1970, which gave all children, regardless of disability, the right to an education

Educational background key indicator of immigration views in UK, study finds

Rightwing movements are struggling to gain support among graduates as education emerges as the most important dividing line in British attitudes towards politics, diversity and immigration, research has found.A study from the independent National Centre for Social Research (NatCen) found people with qualifications below A-level were more than twice as likely to support rightwing parties compared with those with qualifications above.The Demographic Divides report says: “A person with no educational qualifications had around 2 times the odds of voting for either the Conservatives or Reform UK than someone with a university degree or higher. This is independent of other factors, including financial precarity, so those without a degree are more likely to support rightwing parties in the UK even after adjusting for their financial situation.“If one wanted to predict whether a person voted for parties of the right in the UK, knowing their educational background would give them a very good chance of making a correct prediction

Prostate cancer is most commonly diagnosed cancer across UK, study finds

Prostate cancer is now the most commonly diagnosed form of cancer across the UK, surpassing breast cancer, according to a leading charity.There were 64,425 diagnoses of prostate cancer in 2022, an analysis of NHS figures by Prostate Cancer UK found, and 61,640 new cases of breast cancer.The analysis found there to be a discrepancy at which stage men with prostate cancer were diagnosed, with 31% of men in Scotland diagnosed with prostate cancer at stage 4, compared with 21% of men in England.About one in eight men across the UK will be affected by prostate cancer in their lifetimes, with approximately 12,200 deaths each year caused by the disease.One in four black men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer in their lifetimes

Don’t rely on BMI alone when diagnosing eating disorders in children, says NHS England

A child’s body mass index should not be the key factor when deciding which under-18s get help for an eating disorder, the NHS has told health professionals.The new guidance from NHS England to GPs and nurses follows criticism that over-reliance on BMI has led to children who have an illness such as anorexia or bulimia being misdiagnosed and missing out on care.“Single measures such as BMI centiles should not be a barrier to children and young people accessing early and/or preventative care and support,” it says.Other factors, such as changes in behaviour by the young person and concerns raised by their family, should help guide decision-making, according to the document. It was welcomed by Beat, an eating disorders charity, and the Royal College of Psychiatrists, both of which helped draw it up

The inside track on curbing UK prison violence | Letters

Alex South’s harrowing account of violence in prisons (Death on the inside: as a prison officer, I saw how the system perpetuates violence, 13 January) deserves more than our sympathy – it demands we recognise these murders and assaults not as symptoms of a broken system, but as a foghorn blaring warnings about fundamental failures.I work in prisoner rehabilitation. I see what South describes from the other side: men whose “scaffolding” is indeed flimsy, who have accumulated trauma before and during incarceration. But I also see what happens when that changes. Our service users work in cafes, bakeries and bike shops, not because we believe in the redemptive power of bread or bicycles, but because meaningful work and purposeful activity are the foundations of desistance

She’s just autistic Barbie – let children play | Letters

As the parent/carer of autistic children, I’m pleased that my kids have more visibility in mainstream culture with the launch of the “autistic Barbie” doll (Mattel launches its first autistic Barbie, 12 January). For the kids, they’re interested, but, given my youngest’s penchant for graffiti, “autistic Barbie” will be drawn all over and resemble “weird Barbie” in no time.I’ve found it hard to share this pleasure, having seen my academic and activist colleagues slam the doll. I completely understand their reasoning. Of course it lacks nuance to use visible accessories to represent a hidden disability