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 of the adequacy of the provisions in place to make NHS healthcare accessible to people who are (a) deaf or (b) have hearing loss; and whether he plans to improve these provisions.

Integrated care boards are responsible for commissioning services to meet the needs of their local population, including deaf people and people who have hearing loss.

Under the Equality Act (2010), health and social care organisations must make reasonable adjustments to ensure that disabled people are not disadvantaged.

NHS England are rolling out a Reasonable Adjustment Digital Flag which enables the recording of key information about a patient and their adjustment needs, to ensure support can be tailored appropriately.

Since 2016, all National Health Service organisations and publicly funded social care providers are expected to meet the Accessible Information Standard (AIS), which details the approach to supporting the information and communication support needs of people with a disability, impairment or sensory loss.

On 30 June 2025, NHS England published a revised AIS. NHS England is working to support implementation of the AIS with awareness raising, communication and engagement, and a review of the current e-learning modules on the AIS. The intention is to ensure that staff and organisations in the NHS are aware of the AIS and the importance of meeting the information and communication needs of disabled people using NHS services.