Down's syndrome awareness

Around 750 babies in the UK every year are born with Down's syndrome. This equates to one in every thousand.

21 March is World Down Syndrome Day. Led by Down Syndrome International, but linking up with national charities across the world, there will be activities and events taking place to raise awareness and support.

In the UK, the Down's Syndrome Association also coordinate a full awareness week. This year’s theme celebrates the many different ways people with Down’s syndrome make a difference to their communities. You can read and share amazing stories and follow it all on Twitter (#LeaveNoOneBehind, #LotsOfSocks and #WorldDownSyndromeDay are all hashtags being used).

Read these for why there's a need for characters with Down’s syndrome in children’s books:

• Why Hayley wrote a book about her daughter who has Down's syndrome
• How Abi Elphinstone has learnt so much from a family member with Down's syndrome 

Finally, here’s a list of children's and young teen books that feature characters who have Down's syndrome. The following includes UK titles where characters with Down's syndrome either appear as protagonists or are simply included naturally in the images.