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 improve rural communities' access to healthcare in West Sussex.

The Government recognises the specific challenges that rural areas face and the potential for certain health inequalities to develop. We recognise that across West Sussex there are areas of significant rurality, which present particular healthcare challenges, including physical access to services, access to specialist services, social isolation and loneliness, and distance challenges for staff.

The Health and Social Care Act 2012 places a legal duty on clinical commissioning groups to tackle health inequalities. NHS West Sussex is committed to working with its partners, including West Sussex County Council and the district and borough councils across the county, to ensure healthcare is commissioned to address these challenges.