Oral Answers to Questions

Peter Swallow Excerpts

Tuesday 24th February 2026 Commons Chamber

[The Minister for Care (Stephen Kinnock)]

On the subject of GP access, I am delighted that 75% of patients now say it is easy to contact their GP, which is a sizeable increase of 14 percentage points since July 2024—that is a really positive development that I am sure the hon. Lady welcomes. Turning to planning, it is very important that the integrated care board, the council and the developers are joined up together, and we need to ensure that happens. There is also the primary care utilisation and modernisation fund, which the hon. Lady’s constituents may be interested in.

[Peter Swallow (Bracknell) (Lab)]

T9.   I am delighted that two mental health support teams are already at work in Bracknell Forest, supporting almost four-fifths of local pupils with timely, targeted mental health support. There is a lot more to do to fix the child and adolescent mental health services system, but could the Minister set out how school-based interventions are beginning to deliver change?

[Dr Ahmed]

Mental health support teams provide innovative early support for children and young people in schools and colleges, and I am pleased that these are working well in Bracknell Forest, too. Up to 900,000 additional pupils will have access to that support by the spring, and we are accelerating the roll-out to reach full national coverage by 2029.