Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will replace his Department's guidance HM 03 on heating and ventilation of health sector buildings with updated guidance which include requirements to (a) reduce dangerous airborne particles and harmful gases that match or exceed those in European standard BS:EN13779 and (b) reduce the transmission of airborne infections.

The Department's extant guidance document, Health Technical Memorandum (HTM) 03-01: Specialised ventilation for healthcare premises sets out guidance for minimum standards with respect to ventilation strategy with healthcare premises. HTM 03-01 was published just prior to the publication of BS EN 13779:2007. This will be updated to reflect current standards when it is reviewed. HTM 03-01 forms part of the list of guidance currently under consideration for review.

Healthcare premises will currently utilise the guidance provided within HTM 03-01 to assist in the determination of indoor air quality standards. The hospital will select the relevant primary and secondary filtration dependent upon the air quality of the local environment and upon the requirements of the clinical area that is served by the air-handling unit in question to ensure the safety of patients and staff. HTM 03-01 (paragraph 4.132) acknowledges that in areas of higher atmospheric pollution higher standards of filtration may be required. A copy of HTM 03-01 has already been placed in the Library and is available from the gov.uk website:

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