Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to improve support for people leaving hospital and moving to a care home.

The statutory hospital discharge guidance sets out that people leaving hospital, including those who will be moving to a care home, should be supported throughout the discharge process and post discharge. The discharge process should be person-centred, strengths based, and driven by choice, dignity, and respect. Individuals should be supported to make fully informed decisions, in conjunction with their wider family or unpaid carers.

Local areas should have agreed protocols for collaborating with onward care providers regarding the individual’s hospital discharge through care transfer hubs, including agreed pathways for raising and resolving any concerns post-discharge.

In 2025/26, there is £9 billion available through the Better Care Fund. Integrated care boards and local authorities should jointly plan how to use this funding to meet local health and care needs, including after discharge.