Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department plans to introduce a national standard for providing (a) full and (b) timely responses to complaints made within healthcare settings across England.

The Local Authority Social Services and National Health Service Complaints (England) Regulations 2009 set out in law the minimum standards National Health Service organisations must adhere to in respect of their complaint handling arrangements. This includes the need to investigate complaints speedily and efficiently and keep the complainant informed during the investigation. The response must include, amongst other things, an explanation of how the complaint has been considered and the conclusions reached.

We have committed in the 10-Year Health Plan to reform the NHS complaints process and set clear standards for both the timeliness and the quality of responses to complaints. We expect this to be within the portfolio of the new National Director for Patient Experience, for which recruitment will soon be underway.