Unpaid Carers: Patient Hospital Discharge

Baroness Pitkeathley Excerpts

Thursday 19th March 2026 Lords Chamber

Asked by

[Baroness Pitkeathley]

To ask His Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the extent to which unpaid carers are consulted before a patient is discharged from hospital, and what plans they have to monitor this.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of Health and Social Care (Baroness Merron) (Lab)]

My Lords, the Health and Care Act 2022 requires NHS trusts to involve patients and unpaid carers in discharge planning, reinforced by 2024 discharge guidance. However, this is not always done consistently and carer involvement is not monitored nationally. We will support better implementation by commissioning work from the LGA’s better care fund support programme this year. Care transfer hub guidance also promotes best practice by encouraging early identification and involvement of carers in planning.

[Baroness Pitkeathley (Lab)]

I thank my noble friend for her Answer. It was important, though not easy, to win for carers the right to be consulted at the point of discharge. I am sorry that better statistics are not being kept, but I am glad to hear the plans for improvement. The survey from Carers UK shows that the number of carers being consulted is decreasing rapidly. Although I fully understand the pressure on the NHS at the point of discharge and the difficulties of securing proper social care support, does my noble friend agree that it is very short-sighted not to consult carers at this point? If they break down from lack of support, the patient is readmitted and there is further pressure on the NHS.

[Baroness Merron (Lab)]

I completely agree with my noble friend that the involvement of and support to unpaid carers is crucial when a patient is discharged because, as she says, it is vital not just for patient recovery but for the whole healthcare system. I welcome the recent Carers UK report that was published last year, which focused on how government legislation and guidance is or is not being implemented and monitored in practice. That has been and will be very useful work for us to continue with.