A group of Brighton is urging friends and neighbours to watch the BBC TV documentary A World Without Down’s Syndrome.
The documentary looks at the ethics of pregnancy screening and how new methods could lead to the eradication of children with the condition.
Members of the group – T21 Brighton and Hove – all have a child or other family member with Trisomy 21, more commonly known as Down syndrome.
The group said: “We warmly invite our Brighton community to watch a BBC documentary that has been made by the actor Sally Phillips, of Bridget Jones and Miranda fame.”
She has a son, Ollie, who has the condition.
The group said: “We are proud to live in our diverse and inclusive city and fortunate to be able to access a really good level of children’s services.
“The prospects for children born today, with this naturally occurring chromosome arrangement, have never been better.
“Please support us, by watching the documentary, so that Brighton can give a big ‘Thumbs up for Down syndrome’.”
The documentary looks at the proposed introduction of national non-invasive prenatal testing (NIPT) to detect Down syndrome and other much more complex chromosomal arrangements.
It suggests that, based on other European countries where national screening is already happening, more pregnancies could be terminated.
The programme takes a look at life with Down syndrome is like.
A World Without Down’s Syndrome is being shown on BBC Two at 9pm this evening (Wednesday 5 October).
People living in Brighton and Hove, with a family member with Down syndrome, or local businesses wanting to support the T21 group, can contact pippa@pippahodge.com.
