Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to the training of Independent Assessment Services' health professionals on Asperger’s and autism spectrum disorder, (a) who provides the training, (b) how many and what proportion of those health professionals have received that training; (c) how long the the training period is; (d) what the training consist of and (e) whether that training is compulsory for all health professionals.

All Health Professionals employed by Independent Assessment Services receive mandatory training on a wide range of conditions including autism as part of their initial new entrant training, delivered by the provider. This includes detailed e-learning and classroom based training modules covering all aspects of autism including Asperger’s Syndrome. In addition, simulated assessments enable Health Professionals to understand how these conditions impact on a person’s ability to undertake the activities in the PIP assessment. This is followed by on-going professional training and support which continues for the duration of their employment in the role.