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 make an (a) assessment of and (b) certify ventilation systems which reduce the risk of transmission of covid-19.

The Health Technical Memoranda (HTM) 03-01 provides guidance on the design and management of heating and specialised ventilation in health sector buildings, including guidance regarding the adequate ventilation of healthcare facilities to ensure staff safety. The guidance is available at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/guidance-on-specialised-ventilation-for-healthcare-premises-parts-a-and-b

The HTM gives comprehensive advice and guidance on the legal requirements, design implications, maintenance and operation of specialised ventilation in all types of healthcare premises. It applies to new installations and major refurbishments of existing installations. Under the HTM all hospital trusts are required to have an Authorising Engineer (Ventilation) who provides independent auditing and advice on ventilation systems and who reviews and witnesses documentation on validation. The Care Quality Commission is responsible for compliance with the HTM under the Health and Social Care Act 2012 (revised), and the Department has no current plans to change this approach