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 help ensure that specialist medical services for Tourette's Syndrome are accessible to people outside of London.

Most services for people with Tourette’s syndrome are commissioned locally by integrated care boards (ICBs) as they are best placed to plan and improve the provision of services subject to local prioritisation and funding. I know, for example, that there have been recent ICB discussions within the provider trust in Leeds related to strengthening the local offer for Tourette’s syndrome.

Nationally, the government is taking steps to alleviate workforce demands to support services for Tourette’s syndrome. This includes, increasing the number of trained clinical psychologists available. Health Education England, now merged with NHS England, supported a 60 per cent expansion in the clinical psychology training intake over the past two years.

Clinical psychologist trainees are able to undertake specialist placements focusing on Tourette’s syndrome, in addition to Tourette’s syndrome featuring as part of the broader neuropsychology curriculum.