Asked by: Caroline Johnson (Conservative - Sleaford and North Hykeham)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many (a) women of child bearing age, (b) girls, (c) boys and (d) men are receiving prescriptions for sodium valproate as of 11 September 2025.
Answered by Zubir Ahmed - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Prescription data is collected by the NHS Business Services Authority (NHSBSA).
The NHSBSA bases prescription data on processed prescription data for each three-month period. This is a commonly used method for presenting prescription data for prescriptions given for chronic conditions that can last longer than one month.
The latest available prescription data is from the period between April and June 2025.
The following information is extracted from the NHSBSA ePACT2 database, using British National Formulary chemical substance sodium valproate (0408010W0) and valproic acid (0402030Q0, 040801020), prescribed in England. The following numbers of patients were prescribed one or more item between April 2025 and June 2025:
(a) 16,400 females aged 18-54
(b) 2,400 females aged 0-17
(c) 6,000 males aged 0-17
(d) 91,800 males aged 18 or over
Asked by: Gill Furniss (Labour - Sheffield Brightside and Hillsborough)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what measures in the NHS 10 Year Plan will support earlier diagnosis of heart valve disease in primary and community care settings.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The 10-Year Health Plan sets out the three big shifts the National Health Service needs to be fit for the future: from hospital to community, from analogue to digital, and from sickness to prevention. All three shifts are relevant to improving outcomes for those experiencing heart valve disease.
More tests and scans delivered in the community, better joint working between services, and greater use of apps and wearable technology will all help people manage their conditions closer to home and help to reduce hospital admissions.
In line with the goals of the 10-Year Health Plan, NHS England has already undertaken measures to improve earlier detection of heart valve disease (HVD). It is commissioning the Primary Care Cardiovascular Society to develop a new referral form to support the investigation of HVD. The referral form is to guide primary healthcare teams to confidently refer patients with suspected, or known, valve disease for specialist assessment and/or echocardiography, where appropriate.
NHS England is also establishing an Expert Advisory Group on HVD which brings together experts and key stakeholders from across the United Kingdom, with the aim of ensuring excellence in care whilst exploring ways to improve heart valve disease management nationwide. Additionally, NHS England is undertaking a review of health inequalities for all specialised cardiac services which will include aortic stenosis, a type of HVD. This will specifically consider the presentation of males versus females with aortic stenosis where research shows that women are likely to present with symptoms at an older age. It is also working with providers to implement a single point of access pathway for severe aortic stenosis.
Asked by: Afzal Khan (Labour - Manchester Rusholme)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of reviewing national guidance for autism diagnosis to reflect differences in how males and females (a) experience and (b) present neurodivergence.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guideline, Autism spectrum disorder in under 19s: recognition, referral and diagnosis, sets out considerations for clinicians when assessing for autism, including highlighting that this condition may be under-recognised in women and girls. The guidelines are available at the following links:
https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/cg142
https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/cg128
NICE has committed to updating these guidelines; however, this work has not yet been scheduled into NICE’s work programme. NHS England published a national framework and operational guidance for autism assessment services in April 2023.
Asked by: Afzal Khan (Labour - Manchester Rusholme)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps her Department is taking to help reduce the gender diagnosis gap for autism.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
We recognise that diagnosis rates of autism are lower in women and girls and lower than the best evidence on prevalence. This may reflect differences in how autism presents in males and females, which may make autism more difficult to identify in women and girls.
Autism assessments should be undertaken by appropriately skilled clinicians who consider a number of factors before coming to a clinical decision. Integrated care boards and health professionals should have due regard to National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidelines when commissioning and providing health care services, including autism assessment services. The NICE guideline Autism spectrum disorder in under 19s: recognition, referral and diagnosis sets out considerations for clinicians when assessing for autism, including highlighting that autism may be under-diagnosed in women and girls.
NHS England has also rolled out training across mental health services with 5,000 trainers having been trained as part of the National Autism Trainer Programme, and this training covers autism presentation in women and girls. These trainers will cascade their training to teams across mental health services.
Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
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 the under-diagnosis of ADHD in girls; and what targets have been set for improving identification rates by 2026.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
We recognise that diagnosis rates of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) are lower in women and girls and lower than the best evidence on prevalence. This may reflect differences in how ADHD present in males and females, which may make ADHD more difficult to identify in women and girls.
ADHD assessments should be undertaken by appropriately skilled clinicians who consider several factors before coming to a clinical decision. Integrated care boards and health professionals should have due regard to National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidelines when commissioning and providing health care services, including ADHD assessment services. NICE guidelines on ADHD set out considerations for clinicians when assessing for ADHD, including highlighting that ADHD may be under-recognised in women and girls.
NHS England has established an ADHD taskforce which is bringing together those with lived experience with experts from the National Health Service, education, charity, and justice sectors to get a better understanding of the challenges affecting those with ADHD, including in accessing services and support. An interim report was published on 20 June 2025, with the final report expected to be published later in the year, and we will carefully consider its recommendations.
Asked by: Tonia Antoniazzi (Labour - Gower)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of the replacement of the term females with the term individuals with child-bearing potential in Schedule 2 of the Ionising Radiation (Medical Exposure) Regulations 2017 on (a) clinical staff and patients’ understanding of those Regulations and (b) patient care in sex-specific healthcare settings.
Answered by Andrew Gwynne
A review of the Ionising Radiation (Medical Exposure) Regulations (IR(ME)R) 2017 concluded in 2023. Following consultation with expert groups, including the UK Health Security Agency, United Kingdom medical regulators, and professional bodies, the review found that there was no evidence that use of the term ‘individuals with child-bearing potential’ in the regulations was leading to misinterpretation. The Government is clear that it expects all health services, including medical exposure procedures, to be delivered in line with the Equality Act 2010.
Asked by: Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to promote earlier detection and diagnosis of heart valve disease in women and to ensure better outcomes.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Heart valve disease (HVD) affects over 1.5 million people over the age of 65 years old in the United Kingdom, and this number is expected to increase in line with general population growth and the increase in the number of older people. Continuous improvements have been made in the HVD pathway for service users, but there remains unwarranted variation and inequalities in gender.
A review of health inequalities for all specialised cardiac services, including aortic stenosis services, a type of HVD, is currently being undertaken. This will specifically consider the presentation of males versus females with aortic stenosis. In addition, work to improve HVD outcomes includes:
Asked by: Sammy Wilson (Democratic Unionist Party - East Antrim)
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 increase girls' access to mental health services.
Answered by Maria Caulfield
Health policy is devolved to the Northern Ireland Executive. In England, through the NHS Long Term Plan, the Government is providing record levels of investment and increasing the mental health workforce, to expand and transform National Health Service mental health services in England. Almost £16 billion was invested in mental health in 2022/23, enabling 3.6 million people to be in contact with mental health services, a 10% increase on the previous year. Of these, nearly 560,000 were females under the age of 18 years old, a 12% increase on the previous year.
We are rolling out mental health support teams to schools and colleges in England. There are now around 400 mental health support teams in place, covering 3.4 million children, or approximately 35% of pupils. We estimate that this will increase to 44% by April 2024, and we are working to increase this coverage to 50% of pupils by March 2025.
In addition, we announced in October 2023 that £4.92 million would be available for 10 early support hubs in England. We are now providing an additional £3 million to expand the number of hubs to 24 across the country. This £8 million overall package will improve access for children and young people to vital mental health support, offering early interventions to improve wellbeing before their condition escalates further.
Asked by: Helen Hayes (Labour - Dulwich and West Norwood)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate she has made of the average waiting time for cognitive behavioural therapy for women with menopausal symptoms in London.
Answered by Maria Caulfield
Improving care and support for menopause is a priority in the Women’s Health Strategy. It is important that all women experiencing the menopause have access to information and options to enable them to choose the best care to suit them. The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence’s guidelines currently recommend that that cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) can be recommended for low mood or anxiety that arises as a result of the menopause.
CBT is offered as part of the NHS Talking Therapies services. The latest data for NHS Talking Therapies in the London region shows that 35,410 females, including trans women, accessed National Health Service funded treatment during the period from October to December 2023. Of these, 91% completing treatment waited less than six weeks for their first appointment, against a target of 75%, and 98% completing treatment waited less than 18 weeks, against a target of 95%. Data is not collected separately for CBT, which is one type of talking therapy. Data is also not collected separately for females with menopausal symptoms. This data is available at the following link:
Asked by: Nadia Whittome (Labour - Nottingham East)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the Consultation report for the interim service specification for specialist gender incongruence services for children and young people published by NHS England on 9 June 2023, if she will provide a definition of the term early-onset gender dysphoria.
Answered by Maria Caulfield
Early-onset gender dysphoria is referred to in NHS England’s Consultation report for the interim service specification. It is referenced in relation to research that has been commissioned by the research board, chaired by Professor Sir Simon Wessely, into the impact of puberty suppressing hormones in children with ‘early-onset’ gender dysphoria.
The focus on ‘early-onset’ gender dysphoria responds directly to findings from the Cass Review that in recent years there has been a dramatic change in the case-mix of referrals to specialist gender services. from predominantly birth-registered males presenting with gender incongruence from an early age to predominantly birth-registered females presenting with later onset of reported gender incongruence in early teens. It will be for the clinical trial study team to propose the precise eligibility definitions to be used in the study as the proposal is developed over the next few months.