Asked by: Rosena Allin-Khan (Labour - Tooting)
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 potential impact of the decline in the People's Health Trust's turnover and funding on local public health initiatives.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government recognises the valuable part played by third sector organisations in tackling health inequalities and the social determinants of health, and commends the work of the People’s Health Trust in providing funding and support to left-behind communities.
Much of what determines our health and wellbeing is influenced by factors other than health services. The roots of sickness too often lie in poverty, poor housing, poor education, poor work, and poor access to the things that make life worth living like culture, sport, and recreation. We are taking action on the social determinants of health, through our Health Mission, to reduce the gap in healthy life expectancy.
Asked by: Rosena Allin-Khan (Labour - Tooting)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment has he made of the potential impact of the closure of 83 beds at St George's Hospital on patients.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department has not made an assessment. Integrated care boards are responsible for delivery, implementation, and funding decisions for local services, rather than the Department.
Asked by: Rosena Allin-Khan (Labour - Tooting)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 2 June 2025 to Question 53118 on NHS: Workplace Pensions, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of bringing NHS Professionals under the direct control of his Department to allow bank employees access to the NHS Pension Scheme.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
NHS Professionals is constituted as a company that competes for business in a commercial market. The terms and conditions that it offers its employees, including access to pension schemes, are the equivalent to those of its market competitors. If access to the NHS Pension Scheme was provided, the company would be required to fully pass on any additional associated costs to its National Health Service customers. This would be counter to the Government’s ambition to eliminate agency use and reduce bank spend in the NHS.
Asked by: Rosena Allin-Khan (Labour - Tooting)
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 potential merits of making the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guideline on waiting times for autism assessments a statutory requirement.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
It is the responsibility of integrated care boards (ICBs) to make available appropriate provision to meet the health and care needs of their local population, including autism assessment services, in line with relevant National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidelines. In doing so, ICBs should take account of waiting lists, considering how local funding can be deployed to best meet the needs of their local population.
NICE guidelines are not mandatory, but National Health Service commissioners and healthcare providers are expected to take them fully into account in designing services that meet the needs of their local populations.
Lord Darzi’s independent review of the NHS, published in September 2024, highlighted that demand for autism assessments has grown significantly in recent years. Waiting times for an assessment will be impacted by a range of factors, which may differ between areas, including the level of demand and the capacity within autism assessment services to meet that demand.
The 10-Year Health Plan will deliver the three big shifts our NHS needs to be fit for the future: from hospital to community; from analogue to digital; and from sickness to prevention.
Asked by: Rosena Allin-Khan (Labour - Tooting)
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 potential merits of including NHS Professionals employees in the NHS Pension Scheme.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
No such assessment has been made. NHS Professionals is a private limited company operating in a competitive environment to secure contracts with National Health Service trusts, and as such it makes its own assessment of the terms upon which it attracts and retains its employees.
Asked by: Rosena Allin-Khan (Labour - Tooting)
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 help improve autism (a) awareness and (b) understanding among the adult population.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is committed to creating a more inclusive society where autistic people are supported to thrive.
The Department is taking action to increase awareness and understanding of autism within health and adult social care services. From 1 July 2022, service providers registered with the Care Quality Commission are required to ensure their staff receive learning disability and autism training appropriate to their role, as set out in the Health and Care Act 2022. To support this, we are rolling out the Oliver McGowan Mandatory Training on Learning Disability and Autism. Over two million people have now completed the e-learning module, which is the first part of the training.
The Government has also committed to raising awareness of all forms of neurodiversity, including autism, in the workplace. An independent panel made of academics with expertise and experiences of neurodiversity, including autism, has been launched to advise the Government on fostering more inclusive workplaces. This will build on the recommendations outlined in the Buckland Review of Autism Employment, which related solely to autism.
The panel will advise employers and ministers on boosting neurodiversity awareness and inclusion at work, including for autistic people. The panel will consider mechanisms for change, making recommendations in the summer.
Asked by: Rosena Allin-Khan (Labour - Tooting)
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 health visitor check-ups for newborns within the first 12 months.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Data on new birth health visitor reviews is officially recorded and published annually. In 2023/24, the most recent annual data available, 97.8% of newborns received a health visitor review within 30 days following birth, a statistic stable from the previous year. The same data shows that 81.8% of newborns received a six to eight week health visitor review by week eight, which is 2.2% higher than 2022/23, but 3.3% lower than the comparable figure from 2019/20. Meanwhile, 86.5% of children received a 12-month health visitor review by month 15. This 12-month review figure represents an increase of 3.9% from 2022/23. It also represents a 2.9% increase from 2019/20.
The Government laid out its commitment to strengthen health visiting services in the Plan for Change.
Asked by: Rosena Allin-Khan (Labour - Tooting)
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 widen access to appropriate therapy treatments for adult survivors of childhood abuse.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
National Health Service mental health services can support adults who have experienced trauma as a result of childhood abuse.
The Government has chosen to prioritise funding to deliver expansions of NHS Talking Therapies. These offer well-governed, evidence-based, and effective psychological therapy services for common mental health problems, including depression, anxiety disorders, and post-traumatic stress reactions. These services are available in every integrated care system through self-referral.
NHS Talking Therapies consistently meet the existing waiting time standards, which state that 75% of referrals should be seen within six weeks, and 95% of referrals should be seen within 18 weeks. NHS Talking Therapies continue to expand to deliver additional courses of treatment and to increase the number of sessions available. It is expected that an additional 384,000 people will access treatment by 2028/29.
Guidance published by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence recommends that individuals with post-traumatic stress disorder should receive high-intensity interventions from the outset. The recent expansion focuses on the high-intensity workforce within NHS Talking Therapies, who receive training on how to support individuals impacted by abuse. This workforce includes therapists trained in trauma focussed Cognitive Behavioural Therapy and Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.
Asked by: Rosena Allin-Khan (Labour - Tooting)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an assessment of the adequacy of NHS therapy treatments for adult survivors of childhood abuse.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
National Health Service mental health services can support adults who have experienced trauma as a result of childhood abuse.
The Government has chosen to prioritise funding to deliver expansions of NHS Talking Therapies. These offer well-governed, evidence-based, and effective psychological therapy services for common mental health problems, including depression, anxiety disorders, and post-traumatic stress reactions. These services are available in every integrated care system through self-referral.
NHS Talking Therapies consistently meet the existing waiting time standards, which state that 75% of referrals should be seen within six weeks, and 95% of referrals should be seen within 18 weeks. NHS Talking Therapies continue to expand to deliver additional courses of treatment and to increase the number of sessions available. It is expected that an additional 384,000 people will access treatment by 2028/29.
Guidance published by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence recommends that individuals with post-traumatic stress disorder should receive high-intensity interventions from the outset. The recent expansion focuses on the high-intensity workforce within NHS Talking Therapies, who receive training on how to support individuals impacted by abuse. This workforce includes therapists trained in trauma focussed Cognitive Behavioural Therapy and Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.
Asked by: Rosena Allin-Khan (Labour - Tooting)
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 improve diagnostic pathways for those suffering from persistent unexplained symptoms.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
It's vital that the National Health Service is there when people need it, and that symptoms are investigated to provide a diagnosis promptly, to enable treatment.
That is why we are committed to fixing the front door of the NHS and improving access to general practices (GPs). We are bringing back the family doctor, and incentivising continuity of care so that patients can see the same doctor at each appointment, which can play an important role in identifying and managing health conditions. Additionally, we have announced a proposed £889 million uplift to the GP Contract in 2025/26, the largest uplift in years, with a rising share of total NHS resources going to GPs. We are also currently consulting on key proposals to improve GP access and recruitment.
Cutting waiting lists for diagnostic tests is a key priority for the Government. It is unacceptable that some patients are waiting over six weeks for a diagnostic test. Our Elective Reform Plan, published in January 2025, builds on the investments already made with an ambitious vision for the future of diagnostic testing. This will include more straight-to-test pathways, increasing and expanding community diagnostic centres, and better use of technology.