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 ensure that care homes inform families of covid-19 infections in their care homes.

As part of its Emergency Support Framework, the Care Quality Commission (CQC) asks how providers share information about health and safety risks with staff, people using the service and any visitors. Additionally, the CQC has recently endorsed a joint statement from the Relatives and Residents Association and the National Care Forum which sets out shared expectations and good practice relating to the importance of clear, open, transparent and regular communications between care providers and the families of their residents during the COVID-19 pandemic.