Asked by: Connor Naismith (Labour - Crewe and Nantwich)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to help raise awareness of fetal alcohol spectrum disorders in (a) hospitals, (b) schools and (c) local authorities.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is committed to improving support for all children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities, including those with foetal alcohol spectrum disorders.
The Government recognises that foetal alcohol spectrum disorders can have a significant impact on the early years development of children. As a result, schools must use their best endeavours to make sure a child or young person gets the special educational provision they need. This includes monitoring the progress of pupils regularly and putting support in place where needed, including arranging diagnostic tests where appropriate. To support all teachers, we are implementing a range of high-quality teacher development programmes, from initial teacher training and into early career teaching, through to the reformed suite of leadership and specialist national professional qualifications, to ensure that teachers have the skills to support all pupils to succeed.
The Department asked the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence to produce a Quality Standard in England for Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) to help providers and commissioners improve both diagnosis and support for people affected by FASD. This includes guidance on individualised management plans, which help to coordinate care across a range of healthcare professionals, as well as education and social services, and improve outcomes. The Quality Standard also covers support during pregnancy to improve awareness and prevent the disorder. It was published in March 2022, and is available at the following link:
https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/qs204
Healthcare providers advise pregnant women about the risks of alcohol consumption, document alcohol use, and refer children with probable prenatal alcohol exposure for assessment.
In addition, healthcare professionals conduct thorough neurodevelopmental assessments and develop tailored management plans for diagnosed individuals, aiming to improve early identification and provide comprehensive support to help children achieve their full potential.
Asked by: Connor Naismith (Labour - Crewe and Nantwich)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to help ensure that research into long-COVID is adequately funded.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department funds research on health and social care through the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR). The NIHR remains committed to funding high-quality research to understand the causes, consequences, and treatment for long COVID.
We are actively exploring next steps for research in this area. We recently held a roundtable on long COVID research on 17 October 2025, led by the Minister responsible for long COVID and co-hosted with the Chief Scientific Adviser, Professor Lucy Chappell.
Asked by: Connor Naismith (Labour - Crewe and Nantwich)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department plans to include vasa praevia screening as part of antenatal care within the NHS.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Based on the UK National Screening Committee’s last review in 2023 of screening women for vasa praevia during pregnancy, screening is not currently recommended, because:
- it is not known how many babies are affected by it in the United Kingdom;
- it is not known how accurate screening tests are at detecting it;
- screening may mean some women are offered an early caesarean when they do not need one; and
- some women may be reassured by false tests and still have a problem during delivery.
The Secretariat hopes to be able to commission a further evidence review within the next three years.
Asked by: Connor Naismith (Labour - Crewe and Nantwich)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many (a) Community First Responders and (b) Emergency Medical Technician use blue light vehicles.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
This data is not held centrally by the Department. Community First Responders (CFRs) are community volunteers who respond to incidents, supporting ambulance services. CFRs are not trained to drive under blue light emergency conditions, and must follow all road traffic laws.
Emergency Medical Technicians are trained to drive under blue light conditions, and may be deployed to incidents in a single crewed vehicle or a twin crewed vehicle with an accompanying paramedic.
Asked by: Connor Naismith (Labour - Crewe and Nantwich)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans he has to support people who require long term care for (a) dementia and (b) other debilitating diseases with the costs of such care.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
We want a society where every person, including those with dementia and other long-term conditions, receives high-quality, compassionate continuity of care, with their families and carers also supported. Central to this is the provision of personalised care.
This person-centred approach is echoed throughout the Dementia Well Pathway. This includes diagnosing well, living and supporting well, and dying well. The pathway highlights that services need to be integrated, commissioned, monitored, and aligned with National Institute for Health and Care Excellence standards for each component of the pathway.
Some individuals with the highest levels of complex, intense, and unpredictable needs may be eligible for NHS Continuing Healthcare. This is a package of health and social care arranged and funded solely by the National Health Service for adults assessed as having a primary health need.
Asked by: Connor Naismith (Labour - Crewe and Nantwich)
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 implications for his policies of the condition of RAAC at Leighton Hospital in Crewe and Nantwich constituency.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
As one of the seven hospitals constructed mostly using reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC), Leighton Hospital was selected to be rebuilt as part of the New Hospital Programme (NHP) in May 2023. It is also part of NHS England’s robust national RAAC programme, which is backed by £954 million. This programme has delivered mitigation, safety, and eradication works across all National Health Service sites in England with confirmed RAAC, to keep facilities safe and open, including Leighton Hospital. Keeping capacity open but being scrupulous about monitoring and mitigation until the hospital is rebuilt is fully in line with the current evidence and recommendations of the Institute of Structural Engineers.
As the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care announced, and as subsequently confirmed in the Chancellor’s statement on 29 July 2024, the Department will undertake a full and comprehensive review of the NHP to provide a realistic and costed timetable for delivery. This will take into account the urgent need to rebuild Leighton Hospital to ensure the safety of staff and patients. Once the review into the NHP is concluded the Secretary of State will update Parliament and set out the next steps for the Programme.