Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the NHS Long Term Workforce Plan, what recent discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Education on childcare provision for NHS staff.

The Department of Health and Social Care engaged extensively with the Department of Education on a range of issues on the NHS Long Term Workforce Plan (LTWP).

The LTWP sets out the importance of supporting staff to access childcare by making use of the changes announced in the Spring Budget 2023 that extended childcare support to working parents over the next three years. The intention set out in the 2023 Budget will dramatically increase the availability of childcare, reduce costs and increase access to it.

The plan also recognises the high proportion of women in the workforce that are likely to have parental/caring responsibilities and sets out the importance of developing an approach to embed a culture of flexible working to support the National Health Service workforce.