Asked by: Feryal Clark (Labour - Enfield North)
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 improve awareness and understanding of the health impact of fibre among younger adults.
Answered by Sharon Hodgson - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government recommends that adults consume 30 grams of fibre every day and that this should come from a variety of food sources. This is reflected in the United Kingdom’s national food model, the Eatwell Guide, which is a visual representation of Government advice on a healthy, balanced diet, and applies to most people from the age of two years old. The Eatwell Guide shows that we should base our diets on foods which are sources of fibre, for instance vegetables, fruit, and wholegrain or higher fibre starchy carbohydrate foods, as well as beans and pulses. The Eatwell Guide is available at the following link:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/the-eatwell-guide
The Eatwell Guide principles are communicated through a variety of channels, including the NHS.UK website and the Department’s social marketing campaigns Better Health, Better Health Families, and Best Start in Life. For example, the NHS.UK website features a page with advice on the health benefits of dietary fibre and how to get more fibre into your diet, with further information available at the following link:
https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/eat-well/digestive-health/how-to-get-more-fibre-into-your-diet/
The Department, through the National Institute for Health and Care Research, is funding research into the health effects of diet on children and adults, including the effects of fibre. This includes a study which seeks to understand how the diet of children in the UK influences their health in childhood, adolescence, and early adulthood.
Asked by: Feryal Clark (Labour - Enfield North)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment she has made of the potential implications for her policies of the Care Quality Commission's inspection report on North Middlesex University Hospital NHS Trust, published on 28 March 2024.
Answered by Maria Caulfield
Following the publication of the inspection report on 28 March 2024, the Care Quality Commission continues to closely monitor the trust, and hold regular engagement meetings with senior managers. The trust is in segment 3 of the NHS Oversight Framework, which means they are receiving mandated regional support from NHS England. This process involves a diagnostic stocktake to identify the key drivers of the concerns that need to be resolved, understanding their support needs, and agreeing improvement actions. The trust’s leadership team and board are examining their processes and practices to improve them, and to deliver further improvements for staff, patients, and the local community.
Asked by: Feryal Clark (Labour - Enfield North)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans her Department has to improve the Care Quality Commission rating of North Middlesex University Hospital.
Answered by Maria Caulfield
Following the publication of the inspection report on 28 March 2024, the Care Quality Commission continues to closely monitor the trust, and hold regular engagement meetings with senior managers. The trust is in segment 3 of the NHS Oversight Framework, which means they are receiving mandated regional support from NHS England. This process involves a diagnostic stocktake to identify the key drivers of the concerns that need to be resolved, understanding their support needs, and agreeing improvement actions. The trust’s leadership team and board are examining their processes and practices to improve them, and to deliver further improvements for staff, patients, and the local community.
Asked by: Feryal Clark (Labour - Enfield North)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how her Department plans to support North Middlesex University Hospital on the areas of the improvement listed in their Care Quality Commission report, published on 28 March 2024.
Answered by Maria Caulfield
Following the publication of the inspection report on 28 March 2024, the Care Quality Commission continues to closely monitor the trust, and hold regular engagement meetings with senior managers. The trust is in segment 3 of the NHS Oversight Framework, which means they are receiving mandated regional support from NHS England. This process involves a diagnostic stocktake to identify the key drivers of the concerns that need to be resolved, understanding their support needs, and agreeing improvement actions. The trust’s leadership team and board are examining their processes and practices to improve them, and to deliver further improvements for staff, patients, and the local community.
Asked by: Feryal Clark (Labour - Enfield North)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions her Department has had with North Middlesex University Hospital on their Care Quality Commission report, published on 28 March 2024.
Answered by Maria Caulfield
Following the publication of the inspection report on 28 March 2024, the Care Quality Commission continues to closely monitor the trust, and hold regular engagement meetings with senior managers. The trust is in segment 3 of the NHS Oversight Framework, which means they are receiving mandated regional support from NHS England. This process involves a diagnostic stocktake to identify the key drivers of the concerns that need to be resolved, understanding their support needs, and agreeing improvement actions. The trust’s leadership team and board are examining their processes and practices to improve them, and to deliver further improvements for staff, patients, and the local community.
Asked by: Feryal Clark (Labour - Enfield North)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether she plans to provide additional services in GP surgeries in Enfield North constituency.
Answered by Andrea Leadsom
Practices are able to provide Directed Enhanced Services and Enhanced Services by opting in, and will receive payment for these services separately to global sum payments. As commissioners of primary care, integrated care boards are responsible for commissioning Local Enhanced Services, which are not agreed nationally and can vary in scope and funding to fit local needs.
Asked by: Feryal Clark (Labour - Enfield North)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what proportion of GP surgeries are rated as good by the Care Quality Commission in Enfield North constituency.
Answered by Andrea Leadsom
75% of the four general practice locations in Enfield North are currently rated by the Care Quality Commission as Good overall. One further general practice surgery in Enfield North does not yet have a rating.
Asked by: Feryal Clark (Labour - Enfield North)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps her Department is taking to support the recruitment and retention of GPs in Enfield North constituency.
Answered by Andrea Leadsom
We are working with NHS England to grow the workforce by boosting recruitment, addressing the reasons why doctors leave the profession, and encouraging them to return to practice. Under the NHS Long Term Workforce Plan, the number of general practice training places will rise from 4,000 to 6,000 by 2031/32. The first 500 new places will be available from September 2025. NHS England has made available a number of recruitment and retention schemes, to boost the general practice workforce.
Asked by: Feryal Clark (Labour - Enfield North)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of GP provision in Enfield North constituency.
Answered by Andrea Leadsom
Each GP is required to provide services to meet the reasonable needs of their patients. There is no Government recommendation for how many patients a GP should have assigned, or the ratio of GPs or other practice staff to patients. The demands each patient places on their GP are different, and can be affected by many different factors, including rurality and patient demographics. It is necessary to consider the workforce for each practice as a whole, not only GPs, but also the range of health professionals available who are able to respond to the needs of their patients.
Asked by: Feryal Clark (Labour - Enfield North)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps her Department is taking to help grow the GP workforce in Enfield North constituency.
Answered by Andrea Leadsom
We are working with NHS England to grow the workforce by boosting recruitment, addressing the reasons why doctors leave the profession, and encouraging them to return to practice. Under the NHS Long Term Workforce Plan, the number of general practitioner training places will rise from 4,000 to 6,000 by 2031/32. The first 500 new places will be available from September 2025. NHS England has made available a number of recruitment schemes to boost the general practice workforce.