Publish date: 15 September 2025
A campaign launched by West Yorkshire and Harrogate Cancer Alliance aims to encourage more women from certain communities to take up breast screening in a bid to detect cancers as early as possible.
You Can Ask, in partnership with Leeds City Council, was developed after recent data and multiple insight reports suggested that women with a severe mental illness, a learning disability and those from culturally diverse communities were less likely to attend their breast screening appointment because they weren’t aware of the reasonable adjustments that can be made to support them to attend. This can lead to later diagnosis of breast cancer, when it is not as treatable.
Breast screening can detect a cancer as early as possible, whilst providing reassurance and relief to women who get the all clear.
The You Can Ask campaign aims to reassure and empower women from these groups, and the people who care for them, to feel confident when going for breast screening and to increase awareness that they can ask for extra support including:
- More time during the appointment
- A quiet space
- Someone to attend the appointment with them
Recent data found 47% of women who have a learning disability attended their breast screening versus 65% nationally in 2021 (NHS England). Women with Severe Mental Illness (SMI) are 18% more likely to not attend their screening appointment (Public Health England now the UK Health Security Agency). The National Institute of Health Research (NIHR) in the UK highlighted those women of SouthEast Asian origin are the least likely population to attend their breast screening appointment.
Hayley Snowden, Health Inequalities Programme Manager at the West Yorkshire and Harrogate Cancer Alliance, said: “It’s so important to attend breast screening as it can find cancers in those early stages, meaning treatment is more likely to work and more people survive.
“As a Cancer Alliance, it is crucial that we address this clear inequality in breast screening attendance rates. We hope that our ‘You Can Ask’ campaign will raise awareness of adjustments available and helps people feel confident in accessing breast screening, knowing they can shape their experience to suit their needs.”
A range of campaign resources have been produced including leaflets, stickers, packs for health professionals and community centres, as well as an advertising campaign on social media and on bus shelters in key areas around Leeds.
The three month-long campaign, which coincides with Breast Cancer Awareness Month in October, also includes a social media and PR campaign, as well as partnership work with charities and community groups.
The assets were developed with members of the communities being targeted by the campaign in a series of community engagement sessions.
Hayley Gibson, Principal Radiographer for Breast Imaging at Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, said: “The Leeds breast screening team is warm and welcoming, and we are here to help.
“We are passionate about encouraging women to attend their breast screening appointments. We work hard to ensure the clinic environment is as comfortable and friendly as possible, whilst ensuring women have privacy, are treated with respect and feel confident.
“We are delighted to be working together with the Cancer Alliance and Leeds City Council to increase awareness of the reasonable adjustments that are available, which will hopefully encourage more women from a range of different backgrounds, through our doors.”
Louise Cresswell, Public Health Specialist (Cancer) and Screening, Prevention and Awareness and Increasing Screening Workstream Lead at Leeds City Council said: ‘We are extremely thankful to the West Yorkshire and Harrogate Cancer Alliance for funding the You Can Ask campaign.
“We know inequalities exist in cancer screening uptake, diagnosis and subsequent outcomes. A factor contributing towards this is the additional barriers certain groups experience in accessing screening.
“Taking a co-productive approach, this project has worked with these groups to understand the barriers, increase knowledge and confidence around reasonable adjustments and to co-produce meaningful campaign assets.
“It has been a pleasure to be a partner in a campaign aimed at really making a difference locally towards narrowing unacceptable inequalities.”
Read more about the campaign here: https://
