Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether her Department is taking steps to help support integrated care boards to develop palliative care strategies for (a) hospices, (b) care homes, (c) hospitals and (d) within the community in their areas.

While the National Health Service has always been required to commission appropriate palliative and end of life care services to meet the reasonable needs of their population, in 2022 palliative care services were added to the list of services an integrated care board (ICB) must commission, promoting a more consistent national approach and supporting commissioners in prioritising palliative and end of life care in all settings. To support ICBs in this duty, NHS England has published statutory guidance and service specifications.

From April 2024, NHS England will include palliative and end of life care in the list of topics for its regular performance discussions between national and regional leads. Additionally, NHS England has commissioned the development of a palliative and end of life care dashboard, which brings together relevant local data in one place. The dashboard helps commissioners understand the palliative and end of life care needs of those in their local population, enabling ICBs to put plans in place to address and track the improvement of health inequalities.