Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment he has made of the robustness of protections for patient advocates' (a) personal care interactions with NHS services and (b) their advocacy for patients.

For people who find it difficult to understand their care or find it hard to speak up, ‘Someone to speak up for you advocates’ are available to act as a spokesperson for them. They can help with a wide range of support needs, including understanding the care and support process, helping with decisions and standing up for a patient’s rights. People can access this support through their local council.

Advocacy support is also available for anyone who wants to make a complaint about the National Health Service. Local authorities have a legal obligation to provide an Independent Complaints Advocacy Service to support people who are making or thinking about making a complaint. An NHS complaints advocate can provide support at any stage of the complaints process. The Government is providing approximately £15 million of grant funding to local authorities this year towards this service.