Increasing access to the Offender Personality Disorder (OPD) pathway for people on probation from ethnic minority backgrounds.

This article focuses on addressing the underrepresentation of individuals from Asian ethnic backgrounds in accessing Offender Personality Disorder (OPD) Pathway services within the West Midlands Probation Service. Despite Asians comprising 16% of the male and 6% of the female probation caseload, only 8% of Asian males and 3% of Asian females were screened into the OPD Pathway. In response, the AFFIRM (Advice & Forensic Formulation Informing Risk Management) team developed a culturally informed Practitioners Guide to support Probation Practitioners in conducting more inclusive assessments by incorporating cultural considerations related to mental health, family dynamics, and discrimination. Feedback from staff highlighted the guide's accessibility and alignment with existing assessment tools but also noted challenges such as time constraints and confidence in discussing cultural issues. Future plans include staff training, reflective practice integration, and wider dissemination to improve equity in OPD service access and better reflect the ethnic composition of the probation caseload.