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 joined up working between local authority social services and the NHS in dementia cases where a patient and their carer live in different local authority areas.

Carer support where a carer lives in a different local authority or National Health Service integrated care board area is not specifically detailed in the dementia guidance documents. However, all core dementia guidance, including The Dementia 100, The Dementia Care Pathway, and The Dementia RightCare scenario, signal the expectation to provide person-centred, integrated pathways across health and social care. This principle is intended to support carers irrespective of location.

We will deliver the first ever Modern Service Framework for Frailty and Dementia to deliver rapid and significant improvements in quality of care and productivity. This will be informed by phase one of the independent commission into adult social care, expected in 2026.

Those with dementia will also benefit from more joined-up care through co-created care plans, as by 2027, 95% of those with complex needs will have an agreed care plan.

The My Carer tool will give family, friends, and carers, including those looking after someone with dementia, access to the NHS App. This will ensure decisions are agreed and taken by those who best know the patient, who may not be able to make those decisions independently, whilst making it easier for unpaid carers to manage their care and access professionals whenever they need them.