Asked by: Wendy Morton (Conservative - Aldridge-Brownhills)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent discussions she has had with Transport for West Midlands on improving bus reliability in the Black Country.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Government is committed to helping local leaders improve local bus services and improve reliability across England, including in the West Midlands. The Department for Transport regularly engages with local authority representatives from the West Midlands Combined Authority, including as part of our support to local transport authorities pursuing bus franchising.
We are taking action to give local leaders the powers they need to deliver better bus services for passengers, including through the Bus Services Act 2025 which devolved powers to local authorities who know their local areas the best. In addition, the Government has confirmed over £3 billion from 2026/27 to support local leaders and bus operators to improve bus services over the spending review period. This includes multi-year allocations for local authorities under the Local Authority Bus Grant (LABG) totalling nearly £700 million per year.
The West Midlands Combined Authority will be allocated £119.4 million under the LABG from 2026/27 to 2028/29, in addition to the £37 million they are already receiving this year. This funding can be used to expand services and improve reliability.
Asked by: James Cartlidge (Conservative - South Suffolk)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to his Department's press release entitled Homes fit for heroes with extra £1.5 billion for forces housing through upcoming Strategic Defence Review, published on 31 May 2025, how much of the £7 billion to be spent on military accommodation this Parliament will be spent on Single Living Accommodation.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The Defence Housing Strategy, published on 3 November 2025, sets out plans to improve the standard of Service family homes as part of a generational renewal of Defence family housing. Through the Consumer Charter, 1,000 of the worst homes were refurbished before Christmas 2025 - with hundreds more military properties due to be upgraded by the Spring. Future plans are being worked through carefully, with the ambition to make improvements to homes right across the country and in all nations of the UK, Further updates will be provided in due course following the publication of the Defence Investment Plan. This Government inherited military homes in a terrible state with regular reports of black mould in bedrooms, leaky roofs and broken boilers. We said that we would make defence housing a priority and we are.
Asked by: Baroness Shawcross-Wolfson (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government what pilots are currently underway to test reforms to the fit note system, including the locations and duration of those pilots, and the groups of patients and employers involved; what further reforms to the fit note system they are planning, beyond the current pilots; and when they expect to publish further details.
Answered by Baroness Sherlock - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
On 11th July 2025, we announced a WorkWell Primary Care Innovation Fund, which offered a portion of £1.5 million of single year funding to each of the fifteen WorkWell pilot sites to test innovative approaches to the fit note within primary care.
The funding is supporting local areas to boost capacity in primary care to provide better work and health support via the fit note process, with the longer term aims of reducing pressure on GPs and improving patients’ work and health outcomes.
Each of the 15 WorkWell Integrated Care Boards has received up to £100,000, with interventions running from October 2025 to March 2026. The locations of the sites are:
Birmingham and Solihull,
Black Country,
Bristol North Somerset and South Gloucestershire (BNSSG),
Cambridgeshire,
Cornwall and Isles of Scilly,
Coventry,
Frimley,
Greater Manchester,
Herefordshire,
Lancashire and South Cumbria,
Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland (LLR),
North Central London,
North West London,
South Yorkshire, and
Surrey Heartlands.
One of the key aims of the funding is to build the evidence base for how the fit note process within primary care can be improved, and findings will inform future policy development. Most sites are using the funding to test new or additional roles within Primary Care Networks, including social prescribers, work and health coaches, or physiotherapists, to either issue the fit note instead of the GP or provide wraparound work and health support to the fit note recipient.
However, we know that we need to go further. The Keep Britain Working Review was clear that the fit note is ‘not working as intended’ and recommended that we test alternative approaches to the fit note, working with GPs and health services to explore improvements and replacements. We are currently considering how to respond to the Review’s recommendations on the fit note, and we will bring forward more information in due course.
Asked by: Lord Scriven (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the proposal to require prior approval introduced by the Black Country Integrated Care Board for ADHD and autism assessments; and what steps they are taking to ensure that such schemes do not infringe upon the statutory right to choose established in the NHS Constitution, particularly where referrals to independent providers are being paused or restricted.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
It is the responsibility of integrated care boards (ICBs) in England to make appropriate provision to meet the health and care needs of their local population, including providing access to attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and autism assessments, in line with relevant National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidelines.
NHS England issued advice to systems on ADHD service delivery and prioritisation on 7 October 2025. This advice includes guidance on managing service provisions, reviewing waiting lists and providing patient support. The advice can be found on NHS England’s website.
The Medium-Term Planning Framework, published 24 October, was explicit that ICBs and providers are expected to optimise existing resources to reduce long waits for ADHD and autism assessments and improve the quality of assessments by implementing existing and new guidance, as published.
The NHS Black Country ICB has a prior-approval process to make sure referrals meet clinical criteria and that providers meet required quality and governance standards. This applies to all Right to Choose providers offering ADHD and autism assessments. This does not affect patient choice, as people will still be able to choose their preferred provider when their general practitioner makes a referral.
Patients already have the legal right to choose the provider and team who will provide their elective care in certain cases. These rights extend to any provider in England who holds a contract with an ICB, or NHS England, for the service/s the patient requires, as per the NHS Choice Framework. This includes independent sector providers. ADHD services are already in scope of this legislation.
Asked by: Ian Roome (Liberal Democrat - North Devon)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the potential implications for his Department's policies on the handling of domestic abuse cases in the family courts of the Domestic Abuse Commissioner’s October 2025 report entitled Everyday Business; and whether he plans to expand the roll-out of the Pathfinder court model in the South West.
Answered by Alex Davies-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
The Government welcomes the publication of the Domestic Abuse Commissioner’s report “Everyday Business: Addressing domestic abuse and continuing harm through a family court review and reporting mechanism”. We are carefully considering the recommendations made in the report and will publish a full response shortly.
This Government recognises the impact that family court proceedings can have on children and adult survivors of domestic abuse, which is why we are prioritising the protection of domestic abuse survivors going through the family court. The includes the expansion of the Pathfinder programme, which promotes safeguarding and supports victims of domestic abuse through multi-agency collaboration and expert domestic abuse support.
Launched in Dorset and North Wales in February 2022, the Pathfinder model has since expanded to nine court areas, the most recent areas being the Black Country and Shropshire, Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent and Herefordshire and Worcestershire in November 2025. In January it will be rolled out to Hampshire and the Isle of Wight, the largest court area in the South West. This will mean around a quarter of relevant cases across England and Wales follow the model.
Further expansion of the model is being considered as part of the departmental allocations process which follows the latest Spending Review, and we are unable to pre-empt the outcome of this.
Asked by: Wendy Morton (Conservative - Aldridge-Brownhills)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether he has made an assessment of the potential impact of apprenticeship measures in the Autumn Budget 2025 on small and medium-sized employers in Aldridge-Brownhills constituency and the Black Country; and whether he plans to provide additional support to SMEs for apprenticeship reforms, levy transfers and administrative requirements.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
At the Budget, we announced more than £1.5 billion over the Spending Review period for investment in employment and skills support, supporting more opportunities for young people and SMEs across England, including in the West Midlands. This includes an additional £725 million to help support apprenticeships for young people, including a change to fully fund SME apprenticeships for eligible people aged under 25. This investment will also fund an £140 million pilot of new approaches to better connect young people aged 16-24, especially those who are NEET, to local apprenticeship opportunities.
These are important steps in the government’s ambition to support 50,000 more young people into apprenticeships, which will also be supported by expanding foundation apprenticeships into sectors that traditionally recruit young people.
In addition, we provide £1,000 to both employers and training providers when they take on apprentices aged under 19, or 19-to-24-year-old apprentices who have an EHCP or have been, or are, in care. Employers also benefit from not being required to pay anything towards employees’ National Insurance for all apprentices aged up to age 25, when the employee’s wage is below £50,270 a year.
The government also facilitates and funds the Apprenticeship Ambassador Network (AAN) which comprises 2,500 employers and apprentices who volunteer to promote the benefits of apprenticeships. It operates across all parts of England, including the West Midlands, through nine regional networks which provide buddying and mentoring support to small businesses to help them recruit and retain apprentices.
Asked by: Wendy Morton (Conservative - Aldridge-Brownhills)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether he will require the Department for Education or newly responsible central government bodies to publish borough-level data on SEND provision, EHCP timeliness and outcomes once funding is centralised, to ensure regional transparency for areas such as Walsall and the Black Country.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
Information on the number of pupils with special educational needs (SEN) is published in the statistical release, Special educational needs in England, accessible at: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/special-educational-needs-in-england/2024-25. This includes information for each local authority on the number of pupils with SEN, their type of need, type of school attended and characteristics such as ethnicity, age sex, and free school meal eligibility.
Information on the number of education, health and care (EHC) plans maintained by each local authority is published in the statistical release, accessible at:https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/education-health-and-care-plans/2025. This includes information for each local authority on the number of plans maintained for all children and young people aged 0 to 25, including those educated other than in schools. It also covers the timeliness for issuing EHC plans, the number of requests for and number of EHC needs assessments carried out, the placement of children and young people with an EHC plan, and the number of plans which cease and the reasons why they cease.
Asked by: Wendy Morton (Conservative - Aldridge-Brownhills)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to increase GP appointment availability in the West Midlands; and what assessment he has made of primary care staffing levels in Walsall.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
West Midlands sits within the Black Country Integrated Care Board (ICB) where appointment availability in general practice (GP) has increased by 13.8% in September 2025 compared to the same period last year. In October 2024, we invested £160 million into the Additional Roles Reimbursement Scheme to give additional flexibilities to recruit 2,500 new GPs into primary care networks across England. We have invested an additional £1.1 billion into GPs to reinforce the front door of the National Health Service. This is the biggest increase in over a decade. Additionally, the new £102 million Primary Care Utilisation and Modernisation Fund will create additional clinical space within over 1,000 GPs across England to deliver 8.3 million more appointments each year.
As of 30 September 2025, Walsall has seen an increase of 17.4 full-time equivalent GPs compared to September 2024. The responsibility for commissioning primary care services, including NHS dentistry, to meet the needs of the local population has been delegated to the ICBs across England. In 2024/25, there were 57 dentists per 100,000 population in the Black Country ICB, which includes the Walsall constituency. This is above average, compared to a national average of 50 dentists per 100,000 people in England.
Asked by: Cat Eccles (Labour - Stourbridge)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to reduce waiting times from referral to specialist appointment in the Black Country.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
We’ve cut waiting lists in the Black Country by more than 10% in the past year, including through the deployment of digital tools and AI to ensure more time is dedicated for patient care. But we are committed to going even further through the investment and modernisation set out in our Elective Reform Plan.Asked by: Helen Whately (Conservative - Faversham and Mid Kent)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many work coaches there were in each English district in each month since July 2024.
Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The tables below provide Work Coach data by English District from July 24 to August 25.
DISTRICT | Jul-24 | Aug-24 | Sep-24 | Oct-24 | Nov-24 |
Avon Somerset & Gloucester | 390 | 400 | 390 | 400 | 400 |
Bedfordshire & Hertfordshire | 340 | 350 | 360 | 380 | 380 |
Berkshire Bucks & Oxford | 420 | 420 | 440 | 470 | 460 |
Birmingham & Solihull | 690 | 700 | 700 | 690 | 690 |
Black Country | 530 | 530 | 520 | 520 | 510 |
Cheshire | 160 | 160 | 160 | 160 | 160 |
Cumbria & Lancashire | 540 | 540 | 550 | 540 | 540 |
Default DWP National | 30 | 20 | 20 | 30 | 20 |
Devon & Cornwall | 320 | 340 | 340 | 350 | 360 |
Dorset Wiltshire Hampshire & Iow | 660 | 680 | 690 | 690 | 690 |
Durham & Tees Valley | 370 | 370 | 370 | 370 | 360 |
East Anglia | 520 | 510 | 510 | 520 | 530 |
East London | 780 | 790 | 830 | 870 | 870 |
Essex | 390 | 390 | 400 | 400 | 400 |
Greater Manchester | 980 | 980 | 990 | 1,010 | 1,030 |
Kent | 440 | 450 | 450 | 440 | 430 |
Leicestershire & Northamptonshire | 420 | 410 | 410 | 410 | 430 |
Lincolnshire Nottinghamshire & Rutland | 550 | 540 | 540 | 540 | 530 |
Mercia | 520 | 510 | 500 | 490 | 480 |
Merseyside | 480 | 470 | 480 | 470 | 480 |
North East Yorkshire & The Humber | 370 | 370 | 380 | 380 | 380 |
North London | 700 | 690 | 620 | 630 | 630 |
Northumberland Tyne & Wear | 460 | 450 | 450 | 440 | 440 |
South London | 840 | 850 | 970 | 1,010 | 990 |
South Yorkshire | 400 | 400 | 400 | 390 | 390 |
Staffordshire And Derbyshire | 520 | 520 | 510 | 510 | 500 |
Surrey & Sussex | 510 | 500 | 480 | 490 | 500 |
West London | 660 | 660 | 680 | 710 | 710 |
West Yorkshire | 780 | 790 | 800 | 810 | 810 |
Grand Total | 14,740 | 14,800 | 14,940 | 15,120 | 15,110 |
DISTRICT | Dec-24 | Jan-25 | Feb-25 | Mar-25 | Apr-25 |
Avon Somerset & Gloucester | 390 | 410 | 430 | 420 | 420 |
Bedfordshire & Hertfordshire | 370 | 380 | 390 | 390 | 400 |
Berkshire Bucks & Oxford | 350 | 350 | 480 | 470 | 470 |
Birmingham & Solihull | 570 | 560 | 710 | 700 | 700 |
Black Country | 470 | 470 | 520 | 520 | 520 |
Cheshire | 160 | 150 | 160 | 160 | 150 |
Cumbria & Lancashire | 510 | 510 | 520 | 520 | 520 |
Default DWP National | 1,500 | 1,500 | 20 | 30 | 20 |
Devon & Cornwall | 350 | 350 | 360 | 360 | 350 |
Dorset Wiltshire Hampshire & Iow | 650 | 670 | 710 | 710 | 720 |
Durham & Tees Valley | 350 | 350 | 350 | 350 | 350 |
East Anglia | 420 | 420 | 540 | 530 | 540 |
East London | 750 | 760 | 890 | 850 | 860 |
Essex | 370 | 370 | 410 | 410 | 410 |
Greater Manchester | 970 | 970 | 1,020 | 1,030 | 1,000 |
Kent | 400 | 400 | 440 | 440 | 440 |
Leicestershire & Northamptonshire | 390 | 390 | 440 | 440 | 440 |
Lincolnshire Nottinghamshire & Rutland | 490 | 500 | 530 | 530 | 520 |
Mercia | 450 | 450 | 480 | 470 | 470 |
Merseyside | 390 | 390 | 460 | 450 | 440 |
North East Yorkshire & The Humber | 370 | 370 | 390 | 390 | 380 |
North London | 550 | 560 | 640 | 620 | 640 |
Northumberland Tyne & Wear | 430 | 420 | 400 | 400 | 400 |
South London | 900 | 920 | 1,050 | 1,060 | 1,060 |
South Yorkshire | 370 | 370 | 380 | 390 | 380 |
Staffordshire And Derbyshire | 440 | 430 | 520 | 520 | 510 |
Surrey & Sussex | 380 | 380 | 500 | 510 | 510 |
West London | 660 | 660 | 710 | 710 | 720 |
West Yorkshire | 770 | 770 | 800 | 800 | 790 |
Grand Total | 15,150 | 15,200 | 15,230 | 15,170 | 15,130 |
DISTRICT | May-25 | Jun-25 | Jul-25 | Aug-25 |
Avon Somerset & Gloucester | 410 | 410 | 410 | 400 |
Bedfordshire & Hertfordshire | 400 | 400 | 390 | 400 |
Berkshire Bucks & Oxford | 470 | 470 | 480 | 480 |
Birmingham & Solihull | 710 | 700 | 710 | 710 |
Black Country | 510 | 510 | 500 | 510 |
Cheshire | 150 | 150 | 150 | 150 |
Cumbria & Lancashire | 520 | 510 | 520 | 520 |
Default DWP National | 10 | 20 | 40 | 10 |
Devon & Cornwall | 360 | 350 | 340 | 340 |
Dorset Wiltshire Hampshire & Iow | 700 | 690 | 680 | 670 |
Durham & Tees Valley | 350 | 340 | 330 | 330 |
East Anglia | 530 | 520 | 520 | 520 |
East London | 870 | 880 | 880 | 870 |
Essex | 410 | 400 | 400 | 400 |
Greater Manchester | 1,000 | 980 | 1,000 | 980 |
Kent | 430 | 430 | 430 | 420 |
Leicestershire & Northamptonshire | 450 | 440 | 440 | 430 |
Lincolnshire Nottinghamshire & Rutland | 520 | 510 | 510 | 500 |
Mercia | 480 | 480 | 490 | 490 |
Merseyside | 440 | 440 | 440 | 450 |
North East Yorkshire & The Humber | 380 | 370 | 370 | 370 |
North London | 640 | 640 | 640 | 630 |
Northumberland Tyne & Wear | 400 | 400 | 390 | 380 |
South London | 1,050 | 1,030 | 1,010 | 970 |
South Yorkshire | 380 | 370 | 370 | 370 |
Staffordshire And Derbyshire | 510 | 510 | 500 | 490 |
Surrey & Sussex | 510 | 510 | 510 | 500 |
West London | 760 | 790 | 790 | 770 |
West Yorkshire | 780 | 770 | 760 | 760 |
Grand Total | 15,150 | 15,030 | 14,980 | 14,800 |
The table below provides Work Coach data by English District for September and October 25.
DISTRICT | Sep-25 | Oct-25 |
Avon, Somerset & Gloucestershire | 400 | 390 |
Berkshire, Buckinghamshire & Oxfordshire | 390 | 370 |
Birmingham & Solihull | 710 | 690 |
Black Country & Coventry | 620 | 600 |
Cheshire & Lancashire | 580 | 570 |
Cumbria & Tees | 300 | 290 |
Default DWP National | 20 | 20 |
Devon & Cornwall | 340 | 330 |
Dorset Wiltshire Hampshire & Isle Of Wight | 660 | 640 |
East London | 860 | 880 |
East Midlands | 550 | 540 |
Essex | 400 | 390 |
Greater Manchester | 960 | 960 |
Hertfordshire | 210 | 210 |
Kent | 420 | 420 |
Leicestershire, Cambridgeshire & Rutland | 440 | 440 |
Merseyside | 450 | 460 |
Norfolk & Suffolk | 320 | 320 |
North & Mid Wales And The Marches | 130 | 130 |
North East Yorkshire & Lincolnshire | 520 | 520 |
North London | 640 | 650 |
Northumberland, Durham, Tyne & Wear | 500 | 500 |
South London | 900 | 880 |
South Midlands | 450 | 440 |
South Yorkshire | 380 | 370 |
Surrey & Sussex | 500 | 490 |
The Shires | 500 | 490 |
West London | 850 | 830 |
West Yorkshire | 760 | 750 |
Grand Total | 14,750 | 14,600 |
Notes: