Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Conservative - Romford)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps he is taking to help fill job vacancies in Romford constituency.
Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
In the constituency and across the London Borough of Havering, the local Romford Jobcentre team are supporting residents into work and helping those in work to progress to higher paid jobs. We are working with local and national employers to help fill vacancies quickly, delivering Sector-Based Work Academy Programmes (SWAPs), recruitment days, Job Fairs, and work trials.
The weekly job club in Romford Jobcentre provides support on CV preparation, job applications and interview techniques, along with information sessions on a range of subjects to help customers into work, including information about different employment sectors, advice on childcare, support for those with additional health needs and motivational sessions.
The Jobcentre provides a bespoke service to employers, to match and screen candidates, and offers regular Job Fairs focussed on specific sectors and customer groups, with recent events to coincide with older workers week and national apprenticeship week. The team are also working with the London Borough of Havering to develop local support.
In partnership with the College of North East London we have recently offered SWAPs for local customers to gain skills and enhance their applications for the Logistics and Warehouse sectors. Care Provider Voices deliver a range of adult social care opportunities, with Springboard offering opportunities in the hospitality sector.
Asked by: Mick Whitley (Labour - Birkenhead)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment her Department has made of the adequacy of support available to adults with complex mental health needs.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
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 into mental health in 2022/23, enabling 3.6 million people to be in contact with mental health services.
As part of this, we’re set to reach nearly £1 billion of additional funding invested by 2023/24, to transform community mental health services. This is the largest area of investment within the NHS Long Term Plan for mental health, aiming to support more people with the care that is most appropriate for their needs, and that is integrated between primary and community mental health services. Over the last full financial year, 2022/23, 288,000 adults and older adults with severe mental illness were able to access mental health support through these new models.
The safety and care of mental health patients is of paramount importance. Those with complex mental health needs in an inpatient mental health facility deserve to receive safe, high-quality care, and to be treated with dignity and respect.
NHS England has established a Mental Health, Learning Disability and Autism Inpatient Quality Transformation Programme. This programme is working to support cultural change and a new model of care for the future, across all NHS-funded mental health, learning disability, and autism inpatient settings.
The ambition is to increasingly shift mental healthcare towards early intervention and prevention, with treatment primarily delivered in the community. This includes increasing the number of personalised care roles, such as peer support workers, with expansion focused on mental health services where need is greatest.
Asked by: Dan Carden (Labour - Liverpool, Walton)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether her Department has made an assessment of the potential impact on (a) physical and (b) mental wellbeing of the NHS workforce working beyond the age of the current state pension age.
Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
No recent assessment has been made. National Health Service staff are not expected to work beyond state pension age, though some choose to do so. The NHS Pension Scheme is generous, and provides good pensions for retirement. The scheme offers a partial retirement option, which allows staff to draw down part of their pension and continue working in a more flexible way.
The NHS Long Term Workforce Plan commits to going beyond statutory requirements in supporting and promoting flexible working opportunities. NHS England have produced guidance for employers on supporting their older workforce, together with a wide-ranging package of support for NHS staff. This includes tools and resources to support line managers to hold meaningful conversations with staff to discuss their well-being, and emotional and psychological health and wellbeing support.
Asked by: Beth Winter (Labour - Cynon Valley)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment her Department has made of the (a) physical and (b) mental ability of NHS staff to work beyond the state pension age.
Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
No recent assessment has been made. National Health Service staff are not expected to work beyond state pension age, though some choose to do so. The NHS Pension Scheme is generous, and provides good pensions for retirement. The scheme offers a partial retirement option, which allows staff to draw down part of their pension and continue working in a more flexible way.
The NHS Long Term Workforce Plan commits to going beyond statutory requirements in supporting and promoting flexible working opportunities. NHS England have produced guidance for employers on supporting their older workforce, together with a wide-ranging package of support for NHS staff. This includes tools and resources to support line managers to hold meaningful conversations with staff to discuss their well-being, and emotional and psychological health and wellbeing support.
Asked by: Charlotte Nichols (Labour - Warrington North)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment her Department has made of the (a) physical and (b) mental ability of NHS staff to work beyond the state pension age.
Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
No recent assessment has been made. National Health Service staff are not expected to work beyond state pension age, though some choose to do so. The NHS Pension Scheme is generous, and provides good pensions for retirement. The scheme offers a partial retirement option, which allows staff to draw down part of their pension and continue working in a more flexible way.
The NHS Long Term Workforce Plan commits to going beyond statutory requirements in supporting and promoting flexible working opportunities. NHS England have produced guidance for employers on supporting their older workforce, together with a wide-ranging package of support for NHS staff. This includes tools and resources to support line managers to hold meaningful conversations with staff to discuss their well-being, and emotional and psychological health and wellbeing support.
Asked by: Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party - Strangford)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps he is taking with Cabinet colleagues to help support women experiencing menopause in the workplace.
Answered by Mims Davies - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Department of Health and Social Care continue to identify menopause as a priority area in the second year of the Women’s Health Strategy, and Government more widely sees women’s health, and particularly menopause, as an essential factor when supporting the recruitment and retention of older women in the workforce.
Helen Tomlinson - Head of Talent (UK & Ireland) at The Adecco Group - was appointed to the voluntary role of Government’s Menopause Employment Champion on 6 March 2023 by the Department for Work and Pensions and is working closely with the Minister for Disabled People, Health & Work. The Menopause Champion is driving awareness of issues surrounding menopause in the workplace; encouraging employers to develop policies that create a more supportive environment to help women stay in work and progress.
On World Menopause Day (18 October 2023), Government launched the Menopause Resources Hub on the Help to Grow portal - new guidance providing businesses, large and small, with the resources they need to help educate their organisation and workers about the menopause.
The report “No Time to Step Back” summarises the work of Helen Tomlinson in the first six months after her appointment and highlights progress made by businesses during this time. The Menopause Employment Champion’s 12-month progress report “shattering the silence about the Menopause” is due to be published on International Women’s Day.
Asked by: Vicky Foxcroft (Labour - Lewisham, Deptford)
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 the statutory sick pay system on (a) older and (b) disabled workers.
Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Government’s 2019 Health is Everyone’s Business Consultation proposed a package of reforms which aimed to reduce ill-health related job loss and support disabled people and people with health conditions to stay in and thrive in work. The consultation looked at the impact the current SSP system had on all workers, including older and disabled workers.
Asked by: Christine Jardine (Liberal Democrat - Edinburgh West)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what recent steps he has taken to ensure pension remediation for public sector workers affected by the McCloud judgement.
Answered by Laura Trott - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
The Public Service Pensions and Judicial Offices Act 2022 provides remedy for discrimination that arose when new public service pensions schemes were introduced between 2014 and 2016. The remedy has two main elements: older “legacy” pension schemes were closed as of 1 April 2022 to equalise future accrual in newer “reformed” schemes; and, from 1 October 2023 all affected members are being given a choice at retirement (or within 18 months of 1 October 2023 for those who have already retired) as to whether to receive legacy or reformed scheme benefits for the remedy period.
Asked by: Grahame Morris (Labour - Easington)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many midwives working in the NHS were aged (a) 70 to 74, (b) 75 and (c) over the age of 75 years in each of the last five years.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
NHS England publishes data on the numbers of National Health Service staff by age bands. This data is drawn from the Electronic Staff Record (ESR), the human resources system for the NHS. The data is available at the following link:
https://digital.nhs.uk/data-and-information/publications/statistical/nhs-workforce-statistics
However, this data does not cover the age bands requested, and so the table below shows the headcount number of midwives working in NHS trusts and other core organisations in England between 70 and 74 years old, 75 years old and over the 75 years old in each of the last five years:
Year as of September | September 2019 | September 2020 | September 2021 | September 2022 | September 2023 |
Total number of midwives | 26,062 | 26,840 | 26,418 | 26,075 | 27,065 |
Midwives aged 70 to 74 | 22 | 23 | 27 | 25 | 32 |
Midwives aged 75 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 3 |
Midwives aged over 75 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
Source: NHS England Hospital and Community Health Service Workforce Data
Note: The data includes staff employed by NHS trusts and other core NHS organisations. It excludes staff directly employed in general practitioner surgeries, local authorities, and other providers such as community interest companies and private providers.
Asked by: Mike Penning (Conservative - Hemel Hempstead)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of allowing people that are not currently eligible for covid-19 booster vaccines to (a) purchase them at an affordable price and (b) receive them free of charge if they are eligible for free prescriptions on levels of people returning to work.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI), a body of independent experts, advises the Government on who should be offered vaccination through the national programme for COVID-19. Vaccination for COVID-19 through the National Health Service is free for those eligible and there are no plans to introduce charges.
Current COVID-19 vaccines offer good protection against serious outcomes but only short-lived protection from mild symptomatic disease. The aim therefore is to offer vaccination to those the JCVI advises are at higher risk of hospitalisation and death. This risk is strongly linked to older age and some specified clinical conditions.
No recent general assessment has been carried out on the impact of COVID-19 vaccination on absences from work. However, a cost effectiveness assessment has been carried for the groups recommended by the JCVI for autumn 2023 vaccination which includes front line healthcare workers. The analysis for this group explored the potential impact on staff absences due to COVID-19. The available data was insufficient to allow formal conclusions but what data was available suggested that, due to the limited ability of current vaccines to prevent mild illness, vaccination would have only a very modest impact on staff absences. The analysis is published at the following link:
On the advice of the JCVI, NHS eligibility is focussed on those at higher risk of serious outcomes. However, all vaccines that have been licensed by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency for use in the United Kingdom may be prescribed by physicians privately as well as through the NHS. Currently COVID-19 vaccines are not available privately but as is the case for many other vaccines, manufacturers and providers are able to set up a private market alongside the NHS offer when they consider this viable and appropriate. The Government is supportive of the emergence of a private market for COVID-19 vaccines and is engaging with relevant parties on this.