Asked by: Stuart Anderson (Conservative - South Shropshire)
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 access to healthcare facilities in rural areas.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Since June 2022, the 42 integrated care boards (ICBs) across England have been responsible for arranging National Health Service healthcare services which meet the needs of their respective populations, reflecting the diversity of need within these. The local ICB is therefore responsible for ensuring that NHS services are accessible in their area.
NHS England is responsible for funding allocations to ICBs. This process is independent of the Government, and NHS England takes advice on the underlying formula from the independent Advisory Committee on Resource Allocation (ACRA).
The ACRA endorsed the introduction of a new community services formula, that they believe will better recognise needs for much older populations with higher needs for certain community services which on average tend to be in some rural, coastal, and remote areas.
Work is also underway across the Department and with NHS England and the regional directors of public health to develop approaches to address regional health inequalities. In line with the Government’s Health Mission, the Department’s goal is to create a more equitable healthcare system that leaves no person or community behind.
Asked by: Stuart Anderson (Conservative - South Shropshire)
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 the retention and recruitment of dentists in rural areas.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
We are aware of the challenges faced in accessing a dentist, particularly in rural and coastal areas. 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, we will reform the dental contract with the sector, with a shift to focus on prevention and the retention of NHS dentists.
The additional 700,000 urgent dental appointments are being made available across the country, with specific expectations for each region. These targets are more heavily weighted towards those areas where they are needed the most.
Integrated care boards have also started to advertise posts through the Golden Hello scheme. This recruitment incentive will see up to 240 dentists receiving payments of £20,000 to work in those areas that need them most for three years. As of 10 April 2025, in England, there are 53 dentists in post with a further 44 dentists who have been recruited but are yet to start in post under this scheme. Another 256 posts are currently advertised.
Asked by: Stuart Anderson (Conservative - South Shropshire)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he has taken to support access to orthopaedic care for veterans.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Veterans with an orthopaedic condition related to their time in service can ask their general practitioner to refer them to Op RESTORE. Op RESTORE is an integrated physical health and wellbeing service, and works to ensure that veterans are seen in the right clinical pathway by the right clinician. Op RESTORE works in collaboration with many military charities to provide veterans with wellbeing support to ensure they ‘wait well’ for treatment.
The Government recognises that some veterans may not wish to use bespoke services for veterans, and in some cases orthopaedic conditions may occur that are not attributable to their time in service. In these instances, veterans are able to access the full range of mainstream orthopaedic services commissioned by their local National Health Service integrated care board. As well as local NHS hospitals, this includes local arrangements with the independent sector and supporting services, such as diagnostics and physiotherapy provided by musculoskeletal services, to ensure care is provided as close to the veteran’s home as possible.
Asked by: Stuart Anderson (Conservative - South Shropshire)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps are being taken to support community pharmacies in South Shropshire constituency.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
For 2025/26, funding for the core community pharmacy contractual framework has been increased to £3.073 billion. This represents the largest uplift in funding of any part of the National Health Service, at over 19% across 2024/25 and 2025/26.
There is also additional funding available, for example for pharmacies delivering Pharmacy First consultations and flu and COVID-19 vaccinations. The Pharmacy Access Scheme also provides additional funding to support pharmacies in areas where there are fewer.
This year, legislation will also be laid to enable all pharmacies to benefit from the efficiencies of hub and spoke dispensing and/or using pharmacy technicians to undertake more of the work in pharmacies, enabling pharmacists to spend more time with patients.
Asked by: Stuart Anderson (Conservative - South Shropshire)
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 increase the long-term sustainability of the hospice sector.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Palliative care services are included in the list of services an Integrated Care Board (ICB) must commission. This promotes a more consistent national approach and supports commissioners in prioritising palliative and end of life care. To support ICBs in this duty, NHS England has published statutory guidance and service specifications.
Whilst the majority of palliative and end of life care is provided by National Health Service staff and services, we recognise the vital part that voluntary sector organisations, including hospices, also play in providing support to people at the end of life and their loved ones.
In recognition of this, we are supporting the hospice sector with a £100 million capital funding boost for adult and children’s hospices in England for 2024/25 and 2025/26, to ensure they have the best physical environment for care.
Additionally, children and young people’s hospices will receive £26 million in revenue funding for 2025/26. This is a continuation of the funding which until recently was known as the Children and Young People’s Hospice Grant.
As part of the work to develop the 10-Year Health Plan, we will be carefully considering policies, including those that impact people with palliative and end of life care needs, with input from the public, patients, health staff, and our partners, including those in the hospice sector.
In February, I met with key palliative and end of life care and hospice stakeholders, in a roundtable format, with a focus on long-term sector sustainability within the context of our 10-Year Health Plan.
Asked by: Stuart Anderson (Conservative - South Shropshire)
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 access to NHS dental care in South Shropshire constituency.
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, we will reform the dental contract with the sector, with a shift to focus on prevention and the retention of NHS dentists.
The responsibility for commissioning primary care services, including NHS dentistry, to meet the needs of the local population has been delegated to the Integrated Care Boards (ICBs) across England. For the South Shropshire constituency, this is the NHS Shropshire, Telford, and Wrekin ICB. ICBs have been asked to start making extra urgent dental appointments available from April 2025. The Shropshire, Telford, and Wrekin ICB is expected to deliver 7,408 additional urgent dental appointments as part of the scheme.
Asked by: Stuart Anderson (Conservative - South Shropshire)
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 capacity of the National Health Service in helping local authorities to improve the social care sector.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The National Health Service plays an important role by working collaboratively with local authorities to deliver social care.
Integrated care partnerships bring integrated care boards and partner local authorities together, alongside wider system partners, to agree priorities and take collaborative action to address cross-system challenges, improve outcomes, and reduce inequalities.
The Better Care Fund (BCF) is a framework for integrated care boards and local authorities to make joint plans and pool budgets for the purposes of delivering better joined-up care. The NHS makes a minimum contribution of approximately £5.6 billion to the BCF, which includes funding for social care. This supports local authorities to provide timely and joined-up support for people with more complex health and care needs.
Asked by: Stuart Anderson (Conservative - South Shropshire)
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 numbers of GPs in South Shropshire.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
In January 2025, there were 57.8 full time equivalent doctors in general practice (GP) working in the South Shropshire constituency.
The Government is recruiting over 1,000 recently qualified GPs through an £82 million boost to the Additional Roles Reimbursement Scheme (ARRS) over 2024/25, as part of an initiative to address GP unemployment and secure the future pipeline of GPs. Newly qualified GPs employed under the ARRS will continue to receive support under the scheme in the coming year as part of the 2025/26 contract.
We have committed to training thousands more GPs across the country which will increase capacity and take the pressure off those currently working in the system.
Asked by: Stuart Anderson (Conservative - South Shropshire)
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 training pathways to GP registration in (a) rural areas and (b) general.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Targeted Enhanced Recruitment Scheme was an initiative that formerly offered a one-off payment of £20,000 to General Practice Specialty Trainees committed to working in a select number of training locations in England that either had a history of under-recruitment or were in under-doctored or deprived areas. It is, however, no longer needed as currently all general practice training places are oversubscribed and, therefore, filled. We will keep the distribution of the workforce, particularly in rural areas, under review.
On 18 February 2025, the Chief Medical Officer and the National Medical Director of NHS England jointly launched a review of postgraduate medical training. The review will cover placement options, the flexibility of training, difficulties with rotas, control and autonomy in training, and the balance between developing specialist knowledge and gaining a broad range of skills. The review will be based on feedback from current resident doctors and students, and locally employed doctors and medical educators, with a series of engagement events around the country starting from this March.
Asked by: Stuart Anderson (Conservative - South Shropshire)
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 medical students remain in the (a) UK and (b) medical profession after graduation.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
We are committed to listening to the concerns of resident doctors, and to enhancing and improving their working lives.
We are undertaking a range of work to tackle the issues that resident doctors are facing, including improving working conditions and reforming the current system of rotations and placements, working in partnership with the British Medical Association and other partners, as agreed as part of the pay deal last year.
NHS England’s Enhancing Resident Doctors Working Lives programme continues to implement a number of measures to support resident doctors, encouraging them to stay in training and the National Health Service. This includes measures such as less than full time training options, to allow trainees to continue to work in the service and progress with their training on a reduced working pattern, where this benefits their personal circumstances.