Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions she has had with Cabinet colleagues on (a) changes in the levels of autism assessments in children and (b) the potential impact of those changes on services supporting education, health and care plans.
My Rt. Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, has regular discussions on a wide range of matters with Cabinet colleagues. We recognise that in recent years demand for autism assessments for children and young people has increased. The Department of Health and Social Care is working closely with the Department for Education to ensure that children and young people with Special Educational Need and Disability (SEND), including autistic children, receive the right support, in the right place, at the right time. We are doing this through working together to implement the SEND and Alternative Provision Improvement Plan, which was published 2 March 2023.