Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps she is taking to support young people with autism in South Cumbria.

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 services to support autistic young people, in line with relevant clinical guidelines.

NHS Lancashire and South Cumbria ICB has several commissioned services in place currently to support autistic young people and their families and has invested over £3.7 million in 2023/24 in such services. This includes an online advice and guidance service, Autism Unlocked, which has been developed for autistic people and their families, including children and young people and their parents and carers. For children on the assessment pathway for autism, the ICB has also commissioned Pathway Navigators who contact families on the assessment pathway to provide ongoing support, signposting, and resources to families.

In addition, a key worker service has been available in Lancashire and South Cumbria since 2021 to support autistic children and young people or those with a learning disability at risk of mental health hospital admission, or those in in-patient settings.

Nationally, we are taking steps to improve autism services. NHS England published a national framework and operational guidance for autism assessment services on 5 April 2023. These documents are intended to help the National Health Service improve autism assessment services and improve the experience for adults and children who are going through an autism assessment. They also set out what support should be available before an assessment and what support should follow a recent diagnosis of autism. To meet the recommendations in this guidance, NHS Lancashire and South Cumbria ICB is currently undertaking a review of existing provision to inform the development of an integrated neurodevelopmental pathway, including autism and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

In 2023/24, £4.2 million is available nationally to improve services for autistic children and young people, including autism assessment services, pre and post diagnostic support, and the continuation of the ‘Autism in Schools’ programme. Autism in Schools is a national project, which is being implemented locally by NHS Lancashire and South Cumbria ICB, which aims to ensure schools offer environments in which autistic students can thrive, supporting good mental health and promoting a sense of belonging.