May. 28 2024
Source Page: Section 62A Planning Application: S62A/2024/0034 and S62A/2024/0042/LBC 57 The Old Port House, Prince Street, City Centre, Bristol BS1 4QHFound: The need to maintain adequate levels of natural light and ventilation to habitable areas of the development
Asked by: Baillie, Jackie (Scottish Labour - Dumbarton)
Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it has plans to provide funding for the installation of HEPA filters in (a) schools, (b) hospitals and (c) public buildings to tackle the effects of COVID-19.
Answered by Gray, Neil - Cabinet Secretary for NHS Recovery, Health and Social Care
We now live with COVID-19 as one of many respiratory infections. Good ventilation is beneficial to air quality and good hygiene. It is the statutory responsibility of Local Authorities to manage their school estate, and it would therefore be for them to determine if it would be appropriate to install HEPA filters, as a relatively costly technology, in their schools, based on local circumstances. However, in August 2021, funding of £10m was made available to local authorities in relation to improving ventilation in schools. Moreover, further funding of £4.8m was made available to local authorities in January 2022.
The Scottish Government will provide Health Boards with £149 million of capital funding in 2024-25 for investing in their estate and equipment. The installation of HEPA filters, or any other means of improving air quality is a matter for local decision making. Health Boards make decisions on what to invest in based on the risk profile of their buildings. Health Boards will consider what level of ventilation is needed across the different areas in their facilities and will invest accordingly.
Funding allocations for ventilation upgrades and maintenance for public buildings is at the discretion of each individual local authority or public body, on the basis of local needs and priorities whilst also fulfilling any statutory obligations where applicable.
May. 24 2024
Source Page: Summary of published RPC OpinionsFound: CommunitiesSecondaryGreenNoGreenGreenGoodSatisfactorySatisfactoryWeakhttps://www.gov.uk/government/publications/2021-uplift-to-energy-efficiency-standards-improved-ventilation-and-new-overheating-requirementhttps
Found: Windows Single-aspect flatsa are at risk due to limited ventilation .
May. 21 2024
Source Page: RG2 0RP, Thames Water Utilities Appeal (Reading) Conditions attached to a permit - EPR/MP3338LU/V004Found: This includes the general ventilation of rooms, where air is released to the outside environment via
Asked by: Barry Sheerman (Labour (Co-op) - Huddersfield)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps she is taking to measure the air quality of (a) hospitals and (b) hospital car parks.
Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The policy around outdoor air quality measurement is led by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. This data is publicly available and used by National Health Service trusts, and NHS England. NHS England has set out a range of measures to reduce trusts’ impact on outdoor air quality, as part of its commitment to achieve Net Zero for direct NHS emissions by 2040. Specific actions are set out in its Net Zero Travel and Transport Strategy, Net Zero Estates Delivery Plan, and Clinical Waste Strategy, which are available respectively at the following links:
https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-read/net-zero-travel-and-transport-strategy/
https://www.jpaget.nhs.uk/media/588250/Estates-Net-Zero-Carbon-Delivery-Plan.pdf
https://www.england.nhs.uk/publication/nhs-clinical-waste-strategy/
The NHS’s guidance on indoor air quality is set out in the NHS technical memorandum 03-01: Specialised ventilation for healthcare premises, which is available at the following link:
https://www.england.nhs.uk/publication/specialised-ventilation-for-healthcare-buildings/
May. 09 2024
Source Page: Scottish Governments Gold Command meetings minutes which took place during the COVID-19 pandemic: FOI releaseFound: The situation in hospitals remains much as reported on Friday, with some further increases in numbers
May. 07 2024
Source Page: Communal accommodation settings: infectious disease transmissionFound: The lower decks (decks 2 to 3) were composed of cabins with poor ventilation, no windows and 2 to 4
Apr. 29 2024
Source Page: Scottish Government call for evidence: tackling consumption of single-use food containers and other commonly littered or problematic single-use items - summary of responsesFound: that is distributed to care homes, hospitals, schools and to disadvantaged groups is 20 packaged
Written Evidence Apr. 24 2024
Inquiry: Preterm BirthFound: More concerningly, among neonatal units, the interquartile range of hospitals’ rates of severe IVH