Asked by: Alice Macdonald (Labour (Co-op) - Norwich North)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the provision of health services for women.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Women’s health is a priority for this government. We are considering how to take forward the Women’s Health Strategy and aligning our work on women’s health with the forthcoming 10-Year Health Plan.Work continues to improve health outcomes for women, including the £25 million women’s health hubs pilot, new NICE guidance on endometriosis and menopause and extending the Baby Loss Certificate service.
Asked by: Alice Macdonald (Labour (Co-op) - Norwich North)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what data his Department holds on the number of (a) pregnant women and (b) new mothers receiving free dental treatment on the NHS (i) nationally and (ii) by region.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.
Asked by: Alice Macdonald (Labour (Co-op) - Norwich North)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the availability of NHS dentistry for (a) pregnant women and (b) new mothers; and what steps he is taking to increase the availability of that treatment.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government plans to tackle the challenges for patients trying to access National Health Service dental care with a rescue plan to provide 700,000 more urgent dental appointments and recruit new dentists to the areas that need them most. To rebuild dentistry in the long term and increase access to NHS dental care, we will reform the dental contract, with a shift to focus on prevention and the retention of NHS dentists.
The responsibility for commissioning primary care, including dentistry, to meet the needs of the local population has been delegated to all integrated care boards (ICBs) across England. For the Norwich North constituency, this is the NHS Norfolk and Waveney ICB.
Pregnant women and new mothers are entitled to free NHS dental care. The following table show the total number of Courses of Treatment delivered nationally to new mothers and pregnant women over the last five years:
Patient type | 2019/20 | 2020/21 | 2021/22 | 2022/23 | 2023/24 |
Expectant mother | 304,536 | 104,659 | 204,229 | 215,528 | 211,935 |
Mother of child born in the year before treatment started | 471,033 | 144,737 | 289,624 | 330,000 | 321,718 |
Source: data is published by the NHS Business Services Authority, and can be found at the following link: https://www.nhsbsa.nhs.uk/statistical-collections/dental-england/dental-statistics-england-202324
We do not hold data for each region.
Asked by: Alice Macdonald (Labour (Co-op) - Norwich North)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the impact of challenges accessing dental care on pregnant women.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government plans to tackle the challenges for patients trying to access National Health Service dental care with a rescue plan to provide 700,000 more urgent dental appointments and recruit new dentists to the areas that need them most. To rebuild dentistry in the long term and increase access to NHS dental care, we will reform the dental contract, with a shift to focus on prevention and the retention of NHS dentists.
The responsibility for commissioning primary care, including dentistry, to meet the needs of the local population has been delegated to all integrated care boards (ICBs) across England. For the Norwich North constituency, this is the NHS Norfolk and Waveney ICB.
Pregnant women and new mothers are entitled to free NHS dental care. The following table show the total number of Courses of Treatment delivered nationally to new mothers and pregnant women over the last five years:
Patient type | 2019/20 | 2020/21 | 2021/22 | 2022/23 | 2023/24 |
Expectant mother | 304,536 | 104,659 | 204,229 | 215,528 | 211,935 |
Mother of child born in the year before treatment started | 471,033 | 144,737 | 289,624 | 330,000 | 321,718 |
Source: data is published by the NHS Business Services Authority, and can be found at the following link: https://www.nhsbsa.nhs.uk/statistical-collections/dental-england/dental-statistics-england-202324
We do not hold data for each region.
Asked by: Alice Macdonald (Labour (Co-op) - Norwich North)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to ensure that people with Alzheimer’s disease in the East of England receive (a) an early diagnosis and (b) swift treatment.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Improving dementia care is one of four workstreams delivering NHS England’s Ageing Well Strategy. The dementia workstream is looking at improving early diagnosis and early access to care and support for patients, families, and carers, as well as taking preventative action through public health messaging, promoting healthy lifestyle choices, and expanding NHS Health Checks. The workstream is also looking at improving local services and delivering an integrated approach to care across statutory, voluntary, community, and social enterprises, as well as other services, and providing dementia training for the workforce.
A Norfolk and Suffolk system-wide Dementia Round Table event was held in September 2024 to identify what changes need to be made to the pathway in order to meet the needs of a complex patient group in a rural geography. The findings of this event have since evolved into a set of priorities focussed on the review of the clinical model and commissioning arrangements.
Norfolk and Waveney’s statutory partners have signed-up to a Dementia Charter and have agreed to a set of best practice principles and way of working which will mean that people using dementia services will have a smooth transition between services and organisations.
In the last four months, community diagnostic centres have opened at the James Paget Hospital and the Queen Elizabeth Hospital, which will help to make it easier and speed-up the time it takes for people to get diagnosis scans. A further diagnostic centre will be opening at the Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital early next year.
Asked by: Alice Macdonald (Labour (Co-op) - Norwich North)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what guidance the Government provides to local authorities on the inspection of school ceilings.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Responsibility for keeping buildings safe and well-maintained lies with responsible bodies, such as local authorities and academy trusts, along with their schools. The department supports them by providing capital funding, delivering major rebuilding programmes and offering guidance and support.
The department provides good estate management for schools (GEMS), which is a manual and toolkit to support responsible bodies and schools with their estate management. The guidance can be found at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/good-estate-management-for-schools.
The guidance contains a range of information that can help organisations to manage their school estate, including strategic estate management, maintenance and health and safety compliance. This includes guidance on carrying out condition surveys and how to procure professional services, which can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/good-estate-management-for-schools/understanding-land-and-buildings#assessing-the-condition-of-your-estate and here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/good-estate-management-for-schools/planning-and-organising-your-estate-resources#buying-goods-works-and-services.
Asked by: Alice Macdonald (Labour (Co-op) - Norwich North)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many people are affected by long covid in (a) Norfolk, (b) the East of England and (c) England.
Answered by Andrew Gwynne - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The most recent data from the Winter Coronavirus (COVID-19) Infection Study, a joint study carried out by the Office for National Statistics and the UK Health Security Agency, shows that, for the period of 6 February 2024 to 7 March 2024, an estimated 1.8 million people, or 3.3% of the population, in private households in England reported experiencing long COVID symptoms more than four weeks after a COVID-19 infection.
For the same period, approximately 200,000 people, or 3.3% of the population, in private households in the East of England reported experiencing long COVID symptoms more than four weeks after a COVID-19 infection.
Asked by: Alice Macdonald (Labour (Co-op) - Norwich North)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of the availability of ADHD medication; and what steps he is taking to improve the availability of that medication.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department has been working with industry to help resolve supply issues with some attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) medicines, which are affecting the United Kingdom and other countries around the world. As a result of intensive work, some issues have been resolved. All strengths of lisdexamfetamine, atomoxetine capsules, and guanfacine prolonged-release tablets are now available. We are working to resolve medicine supply issues, where they remain, for some strengths of methylphenidate. These are anticipated to be resolved by October 2024.
We are asking suppliers to secure additional stocks, expedite deliveries where possible, and review plans to further build capacity to support continued growth in demand for the short and long-term.
The Department has worked with specialist clinicians to develop management advice for National Health Service clinicians to consider prescribing available alternative brands of methylphenidate prolonged release tablets. We would expect ADHD service providers and specialists to follow our guidance to offer rapid response to primary care teams seeking urgent advice or opinion for the management of patients, including those known to be at a higher risk of adverse impact because of these shortages.
To aid ADHD service providers and prescribers further, we have widely disseminated our communications and continually update a list of currently available and unavailable ADHD products on the Specialist Pharmacy Service website, helping ensure that those involved in the prescribing and dispensing of ADHD medications can make informed decisions with patients, which is available at the following link:
https://www.sps.nhs.uk/articles/prescribing-available-medicines-to-treat-adhd/
Asked by: Alice Macdonald (Labour (Co-op) - Norwich North)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps her Department plans to take to increase rail capacity in the East of England.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Greater Anglia are in the final stages of the £1.4 billion fleet transformation programme with all services now operated by new trains which provide many more seats and greater capacity for customers across the region. In addition, the Government is funding the construction of new stations at Cambridge South and Beaulieu Park, both of which are due to open in 2025 and will create additional rail capacity for the East.
Asked by: Alice Macdonald (Labour (Co-op) - Norwich North)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate his Department has made of the number of open dentistry practices that accept new adult NHS patients in Norwich North constituency on the (a) most recent date for which figures are available and (b) same date in 2010.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
While data for 2010 is not held centrally, as of 10 July 2024, there were nine open dentistry practices in the Norwich North constituency, none of which were showing as accepting new adult patients. This data is sourced from the Find a Dentist website, and is matched to constituencies based on the postcode data shown on the website, which is available at the following link:
https://www.nhs.uk/service-search/find-a-dentist