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 care homes follow Government guidance and allow visits from essential care givers and up to three nominated visitors.

We expect care homes to facilitate visits wherever possible and residents should be supported to nominate an essential care giver. We monitor how care homes are implementing visiting guidance on a weekly basis and this guidance is kept under review. If a resident or their family have concerns that a care home is not following visiting guidance, it should be raised with the home in the first instance. The Care Quality Commission can also investigate complaints and has powers to respond with an on-site inspection, which could be followed by requirement notices and warning notices where providers do not appropriately support residents to have access to visits.