Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to hold integrated care boards to account for meeting their statutory duty and implementing policy frameworks on children’s palliative care.

Integrated care boards (ICBs) are responsible for the commissioning of palliative and end of life care services, including for children and young people, to meet the needs of their local populations. To support ICBs in this duty, NHS England has published statutory guidance and service specifications.

NHS England has a legal duty to annually assess the performance of each ICB in respect of each financial year, and to publish a summary of its findings. This assessment must assess how well the ICB has discharged its functions.