Asked by: Baroness Jenkin of Kennington (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether there has been a call for evidence or consultation to support the review of NHS adult gender dysphoria clinics in England.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Review of Adult Gender Services is aiming to publish its report later in summer 2025. NHS England and the Government will need time to consider the findings, advice, and recommendations before issuing their response.
The Review has examined records, including patient case notes, and conducted site visits at each of the nine adult gender dysphoria clinics to develop a detailed understanding of the operation and delivery of services within each clinic. Further information about how evidence was gathered is detailed in the published key lines of enquiry, a copy of which is attached.
The Review conducted focus groups with patients of the services, and detailed surveys for patients of the service, their friends and family, and for clinicians delivering these services.
Asked by: Baroness Jenkin of Kennington (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what is their latest timetable for the publication of the final report of the review of NHS adult gender dysphoria clinics in England; and whether they intend to inform parliamentarians when they receive that report.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Review of Adult Gender Services is aiming to publish its report later in summer 2025. NHS England and the Government will need time to consider the findings, advice, and recommendations before issuing their response.
The Review has examined records, including patient case notes, and conducted site visits at each of the nine adult gender dysphoria clinics to develop a detailed understanding of the operation and delivery of services within each clinic. Further information about how evidence was gathered is detailed in the published key lines of enquiry, a copy of which is attached.
The Review conducted focus groups with patients of the services, and detailed surveys for patients of the service, their friends and family, and for clinicians delivering these services.
Asked by: Baroness Jenkin of Kennington (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Merron on 4 June (HL7528), whether the revised NHS constitution consultation will include the previous proposals about recognising biological sex and protecting single-sex spaces.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
A consultation on the NHS Constitution, as part of a 10-year review, was launched by the previous administration in May 2024, and was superseded by the General Election in July 2024. The Government will launch a new consultation on the NHS Constitution, with the exact timings for this to be set out in due course.
The proposals that will be included within the upcoming consultation have been developed from a range of evidence, including feedback from the previous consultation, intelligence gathered as part of the 10-Year Health Plan engagement exercise, and the Government’s ambitions for the National Health Service.
Asked by: Baroness Jenkin of Kennington (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they have taken to implement the consultation published on 30 April 2024 by the Department of Health and Social Care, NHS Constitution: 10 year review, including with regard to biological sex and single-sex spaces.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
A consultation on the NHS Constitution as part of a 10-year review was launched by the previous administration on May 2024, and was superseded by the General Election in July 2024.
The Government will launch a new consultation on the NHS Constitution, with the timeline for this to be set out in due course.
Asked by: Baroness Jenkin of Kennington (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government, with reference to the Department for Health and Social Care’s publication of the updated Notification of Child Death Form, whether they have adopted self-identification for under-18s; and if so, how this aligns with their response to the Cass Review.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Notification of Child Death Form, part of the National Child Mortality Database, continues to capture the sex of the child for anyone under 18 years old, in line with sex being a protected characteristic under the Equality Act 2010.
Although questions relating to gender identity already existed within one part of the National Child Mortality Database collection, specifically for suicide and self-harm, the change in October expanded these questions to all deaths. This was to capture the language used by young people and their families to improve system learning and to support the prevention of future deaths.
Asked by: Baroness Jenkin of Kennington (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government, following the joint statement on contraception by the International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics and the International Confederation of Midwives in September, what steps they are taking to integrate person-centred and respectful contraception provision into sexual, reproductive, maternal and adolescent care services, and emergency obstetric and neonatal care.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
We are committed to ensuring that the public receives the best possible contraceptive services. Contraception advice is delivered in sexual health services, general practice, some pharmacies, abortion and maternity services, and online. NHS England strives to ensure that this is integrated into a range of different health encounters that women are likely to have.
For example, sexual and reproductive health services in England provide a range of services, including contraception provision and advice, particularly for vulnerable groups and teenagers. These services are free, open-access, and confidential, to support people to make informed choices.
Contraception advice is provided during both antenatal consultations and at the time of postnatal discharge. Many maternity services also provide both user-based and longer acting methods of contraception at this opportunity.
The Three year delivery plan for maternity and neonatal services made a commitment to offer all women a personalised care and support plan by 2026, taking into account physical health, mental health, and social complexities, with a risk assessment updated at every contact.
NHS England has published guidance to support general practitioners to provide women with comprehensive mental and physical postnatal check-ups six to eight weeks after they give birth.
The postnatal consultation provides an important opportunity for contraceptive health needs to be assessed and for general practitioners to listen to women in a discrete, supportive environment. As per the guidance, women should be asked about contraception and supported to make planned choices about future pregnancies.
Women’s health hubs pilots are being rolled out across the National Health Service, together with sexual health services. These can provide a wider choice of options for women, including longer acting methods of contraception.
Asked by: Baroness Jenkin of Kennington (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government how they will ensure education on, and access to, contraceptives for marginalised and under-served populations.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
We are committed to ensuring that the public has equal access to the best possible contraceptive services. The women’s health area on the National Health Service website brings together over 100 different women’s health topics, including contraception, as a first port of call for women seeking health information. Education surrounding contraceptives should be delivered to all pupils via the Relationships, Sex, and Health Education (RSHE) curriculum. RSHE became compulsory in all schools in September 2020. The statutory guidance is clear that as part of the topic ‘intimate and sexual relationships’, pupils in secondary schools should know the facts about the full range of contraceptive choices, efficacy, and options available. These subjects should be taught to all pupils in schools, and teachers have the flexibility to deliver the curriculum in a way that meets the needs of their individual pupils.
Contraception is a core service for women’s health hub pilots. Women’s health hubs bring together healthcare professionals and existing services to provide integrated women’s health services in the community, centred on meeting women’s needs across the life course and reducing health inequalities. The Department has invested £25 million over 2023/24 and 2024/25 to support the establishment of at least one pilot women’s health hub in every integrated care system.
To offer greater choice in how women can access contraception services across the country, the NHS Pharmacy Contraception Service was launched in April 2023, enabling pharmacists to issue ongoing supplies of contraception, initiated in general practice surgeries and sexual health services. The service relaunched in December 2023 to enable community pharmacies to also initiate oral contraception.
Survey outputs from the 2023 Women’s Reproductive Health Survey will be used to inform future policy development and support strategy work by improving our ability to monitor changes and inequalities in women and girls’ access to contraceptives.
Asked by: Baroness Jenkin of Kennington (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government how they will ensure equitable postpartum and post-abortion contraception provisions.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
We are committed to ensuring that the public receives equitable access to the best possible contraceptive services. Contraception advice is delivered in sexual health services, general practice, some pharmacies, abortion and maternity services, and online. NHS England strives to ensure that this is integrated into a range of different health encounters that women are likely to have. For example, contraception advice is provided during both antenatal consultations and at the time of postnatal discharge. Many maternity services also provide both user-based and longer acting methods of contraception at this opportunity.
NHS England has published guidance to support general practitioners to provide all women with comprehensive mental and physical postnatal check-ups six to eight weeks after they give birth. The guidance, which was written in collaboration with the Royal College of General Practitioners, provides clear advice to address unwarranted variation for the delivery of safer, more equitable, more personalised care. This includes flexible appointment times tailored to a women’s needs.
The postnatal consultation provides an important opportunity for contraceptive health needs to be assessed. During this, women should be asked about contraception and supported to make planned choices about future pregnancies.
Contraception is commonly offered and provided by abortion services, in line with National Institute for Care and Excellence guidelines on abortion care, that were published in September 2019. The guidelines set out that commissioners and providers should ensure that a full range of contraceptive options is available for women on the same day as their surgical or medical abortion. Providers should also ensure that healthcare professionals have the knowledge and skills to provide all contraceptive options, including the contraceptive implant, injections, and intrauterine methods of contraception.
Asked by: Baroness Jenkin of Kennington (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government with reference to the Department for Health and Social Care’s publication of the updated Notification of Child Death Form, which Minister, if any, approved the new questions on gender identity.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The current process for updating the child death review data collection forms does not require ministerial approval.
Asked by: Baroness Jenkin of Kennington (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government, with reference to the Department for Health and Social Care’s publication of the updated Notification of Child Death Form, whether the new questions on gender identity are voluntary for (1) NHS staff to ask, and (2) parents to answer.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Following the death of a child, it may not always be a healthcare professional making the notification and therefore these questions may be answered by a range of different professionals, for instance those in healthcare, police, or social care. The questions will be answered based on what the professional knows at the time when they are making the notification of death. Therefore, if they do not hold any information on the gender identity of the child, this question will not be answered.
Parents would not be completing these forms. The purpose of the notification form is to give the basic information on what is known about the child by the professional at the time of death.