Autism: Parenting Support Programmes

Lord Kamall Excerpts

Tuesday 14th July 2026 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Blake of Leeds (Lab)]

The noble Lord touches on a particular obsession of mine. It is not just about the transition into adulthood, which is absolutely pivotal, but starts earlier than that and is about the transition through the different stages of education. We need to make sure that we completely get away from the awful situation where young people fall through the gaps and there is no information exchange. That is why cross-government working is so critical here. We need the education sector to talk to the health sector and DWP, to make sure that we have a holistic view of young people so that they can move on to the appropriate location and get the right support.

[Lord Kamall (Con)]

My Lords, in responding to the Question from the noble Baroness, Lady Leaman, the Minister confirmed that the Government have not assessed the adequacy of parenting support for families following a diagnosis and do not hold national data on either provision or waiting times. Does the Minister’s department intend to carry out that assessment nationally or to ask ICBs to collect that data locally? If not, without that information, how can the department be confident that families are receiving the appropriate level of support that they need?

[Baroness Blake of Leeds (Lab)]

I do not want to stand here and say that we have got things right. The system is broken and needs so much attention throughout. To pick up the noble Lord’s point about ICBs, the medium-term planning framework gives clear expectations for local ICBs and trusts. We need them to work to improve access, experience and outcomes, focusing on quality and productivity. So many areas have data and gather information, but they do not do anything with it. That is what we absolutely need to address, to make sure that we have an accurate picture and can make the appropriate assessments.