Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made on the adequacy of the availability of cervical cancer screenings for women with physical disabilities.

General practitioner practices are required to ensure that their premises are suitable for the delivery of essential services and that they are sufficient to meet the reasonable needs of its patients, including those with disabilities. This involves making any necessary reasonable adjustments; making alternative arrangements, such as referral to a specialist screening provider; or undertaking the procedures in another setting that is more suitable given any limitations to a patient’s mobility. Where a patient requires specialist equipment, clinical staff will ensure that patients have access to its use in a safe environment.

NHS England is continuously investing in initiatives to help ensure equality of access to screening and, through the Section 7A public health functions agreement, aims to improve public health outcomes and reduce inequalities.

Professor Sir Mike Richards’ review of Adult Screening programmes was published on 16 October 2019. As part of this review, it was recommended that good practice on physical disabilities is shared to enable this to be adopted more widely. The Department, NHS England and Public Health England is considering the recommendations from Professor Richards’ report and will publish an implementation plan in spring 2020.