Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government whether they expect integrated care boards to be able to identify how many children and young people access children’s hospices; and what steps they will take if they cannot.

Children and young people’s palliative and end of life care is provided by a range of local services and providers from across the statutory and voluntary, community and social enterprise sectors, including hospices, with the experience and skills to meet those needs.

While there is no explicit requirement for integrated care boards (ICBs) to identify how many children and young people specifically access children's hospices, commissioning of children and young people’s palliative and end of life care services is the statutory duty of ICBs, which must commission these services in response to the needs of their population,

In July 2022, NHS England published statutory guidance for commissioners on palliative and end of life care, setting out the considerations for ICBs to meet their legal duties and makes clear reference to the importance of access to services. A copy of the guidance is attached.

NHS England has also published a service specification for children and young people which provide guidance on undertaking assessments to enable high-quality commissioning of services that meet both population need and preferences. A copy of the specification is attached.