Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to support the (a) recruitment and (b) retention of mental health specialists in the Kent and Medway NHS and Social Care Partnership Trust.

To fix the chronic workforce shortages in the mental health workforce we plan to recruit an additional 8,500 mental health workers, across both child and adult mental health services, to reduce waiting times and provide faster treatment across all areas of England, including Kent and Medway.

We are working to consider options to deliver this expansion of the mental health workforce, including where they should be deployed to achieve maximum effect. NHS England is also working to improve retention through clearer career progression pathways.