theodi/ndl-core-corpus huggingface dataset:
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Matt Vickers:To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what proportion of pupils with Education, Health and Care Plans are educated in (a) specialist state schools, (b) ARP units within mainstream state schools (c) independent/third sector placements paid for by the state (d) further education colleges and (e) other settings in Stockton West constituency. \p Georgia Gould: Information on education, health and care (EHC) plans maintained by local authorities and the settings attended is published as part of the statistical release ‘Education, health and care plans, Reporting year 2025’, which can be found at: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/education-health-and-care-plans/2025.

Information on the educational settings attended by children and young people whose EHC plan is maintained by Stockton on Tees local authority is shown in the permanent data table ‘Number of education, health and care plans (EHC) plans as at January each year’, which can be found at: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/data-tables/permalink/c1dfe3cb-28bd-44a1-f89d-08de0724494a.

Information at constituency level is not available.
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Mr Andrew Snowden:To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many primary schools in (a) Lancashire and (b) Fylde constituency do not have access to a library in the latest period for which data is available. \p Georgia Gould: It is for individual schools to decide how best to provide and maintain a library service for their pupils. Headteachers have autonomy to decide how best to spend the core schools funding that the department allocates. Given this autonomy, the department does not collect information on the number of school libraries.

We welcome the work of the Libraries for Primaries campaign and others, who work to support children’s reading. On 29 September, my right hon. Friend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, committed over £10 million in funding to guarantee a library for every primary school by the end of this parliament. Funding for this scheme will come from £132.5 million of dormant assets unlocked to support young people to access opportunities. The government will set out further details of the scheme in due course.
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Dr Al Pinkerton:To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment her Department has made of the adequacy of funding levels for early intervention support for children in Surrey Heath constituency. \p Georgia Gould: The government aims to set up every child, regardless of their background, to have the best start in life. As announced in our strategy ‘Giving every child the best start in life’, our Best Start Family Hubs will have a dedicated staff member supporting early identification of additional needs and providing support and guidance to families.

Local authorities should distribute special educational needs inclusion funding for children with low and emerging needs. Disability access funding is designed to support disabled children's access. For children with complex needs, funding is available from local authorities’ high needs budgets.

In the 2025 Spending Review, we announced that funding for schools is increasing by £4.2 billion by 2028/29 compared to 2025/26. This will take per-pupil funding to its highest ever level and enable us to transform the SEND system for all children, from their early years and into school. We are continuing to develop plans to ensure all children get the outcomes and life chances they deserve.
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Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi:To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent discussions has she had with SEND service providers on Government proposals on SEND reform. \p Georgia Gould: This government’s ambition is that every child or young person in our country deserves the best possible educational experience, one that is academically stretching, where every child or young person feels like they belong, and that sets them up for life and work.

Over the last year, my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education, supported by expert advisers like Tom Rees and Dame Christine Lenehan, has engaged intensely with parents, teachers, experts and children and young people on the shape of solutions. We are continuing to engage closely with children, parents and experts as we develop plans to ensure all children get the outcomes and life chances they deserve.

We will build a better system which is grounded in evidence, identifies and supports need at the earliest opportunity, and ensures families can secure support swiftly without a fight. There will always be a legal right to the additional support needed by children with special educational needs and disabilities.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-22)

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Dr Al Pinkerton:To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that (a) internal and (b) external insulation installed under Government energy efficiency schemes are fitted to a high standard in Surrey Heath constituency. \p Martin McCluskey: Companies installing insulation under the Government’s energy efficiency schemes must be registered with Trustmark and carry out work to the PAS2035 standard.

We have improved the quality assurance and consumer protection systems since identifying the issues with solid wall insulation under ECO4 and GBIS.

We will be offering a comprehensive on-site audit to all households that received external wall insulation under ECO4 and GBIS and any issues will be fixed at no cost to the householder.

TrustMark and certification bodies can suspend companies who do not meet the expected standards, and will continue to enforce the robust, published reinstatement policy.
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Sir John Hayes:To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps his Department is taking to recover funds fraudulently obtained under the Energy Company Obligation. \p Martin McCluskey: Where fraud is identified under the Energy Company Obligation (ECO4) scheme, as energy suppliers fund the measures, they are expected to recover any fraudulent payments that have been made to their supply chain. The Government's aim is to both increase our ability to prevent fraud before it occurs and to take action against those committing fraud.

We will ensure that lessons learned from the current ECO4 scheme form part of our considerations for the successor scheme.

We are introducing a new system of consumer protections, with clear centralised oversight to ensure proper installer accountability and better outcomes for consumers.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-22)

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Sir John Hayes:To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what estimate his Department has made of the level of suspected fraud on the Energy Company Obligation since 2022. \p Martin McCluskey: The NAO reports that DESNZ and Ofgem have lacked data to estimate fraud levels. However, an independent reporting in May 2025 found weaknesses in the design, operation and oversight of ECO4 that expose it to fraud.

The Department contracted public and private sector expertise to improve its understanding of fraud in ECO4 and how to prevent it.

With greater use of technology, we will work with industry partners to identify and better target fraud and enforce greater consequences on those committing fraud.

We are introducing a new system of consumer protections, with clear centralised oversight to ensure proper installer accountability.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-10-22)

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Dr Al Pinkerton:To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what estimate his Department has made of the proportion of (a) external and (b) internal insulation installations completed under Government energy efficiency schemes that require remediation in Surrey Heath constituency. \p Martin McCluskey: The Government commissioned an independent statistical audit, however this sample was designed to estimate the overall rates of non-compliance across Great Britain. The samples are not large enough to reliably perform any regional analysis. As we continue with further audits, we will seek to begin to collect this data.

The statistical audit was commissioned by Ofgem in April 2025. Two random samples of audits of external (EWI) and internal wall installations (IWI), across the household populations of both schemes were commissioned to understand non‑compliance rates.

98% of EWI audits need to be remediated. For IWI, that number is 29%.
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Lee Anderson:To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether their Department has run any (a) recruitment and (b) internship schemes aimed to increase the number of people from underrepresented groups in the workforce in the last year. \p Michael Shanks: As set out in the Civil Service People Plan 2024 - 2027, DESNZ are committed to ensuring we attract, develop and retain talented people from a diverse range of backgrounds to create a modern Civil Service, now and for the future.

Department for Energy Security and Net Zero recruitment must follow the Constitutional Reform and Governance Act (CRaGA) 2010 legislation, which outlines the requirements to ensure that civil servants are recruited on merit, via fair and open competition.

Whilst recruitment into DESNZ does not focus solely on underrepresented groups we want to ensure all groups feel supported during the recruitment process and see DESNZ as an employer of choice. As part of our recruitment process, we:

DESNZ has run or supported the following programmes aimed at supporting underrepresented groups in the workforce in the past year:
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Dr Al Pinkerton:To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what assessment his Department has made of the effectiveness of Government energy efficiency schemes in reducing fuel poverty in Surrey Heath constituency. \p Martin McCluskey: The fuel poverty rate in Surrey Heath constituency in 2023 was estimated to be 7.1% of households.

Tackling fuel poverty is a priority for this Government. We are committed to publishing a new fuel poverty strategy for England which will ensure that many more fuel poor households achieve affordable warmth by 2030, alongside our Warm Homes Plan.

In March we allocated around £1.8 billion to local authorities and social housing providers through the Warm Homes: Local Grant and Warm Homes: Social Housing Fund to help upgrade homes and to tackle fuel poverty. Support for home upgrades is also available via the Energy Company Obligation.

Financial support is available through the Warm Home Discount which has been expanded for this winter increasing the total number of households that are estimated to receive the discount from 3.2 million to around 6 million.
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James Naish:To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of new Energy Performance Certificate regulations on (a) holiday lets and (b) the tourism sector. \p Martin McCluskey: Government recently consulted on increasing minimum energy efficiency standards in the domestic private rented sector, including proposals for rented homes to achieve Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) C or equivalent by 2030. We have sought views on whether short-term lets should be included in the scope of our changes, to help ensure a consistent standard across all private rented properties.

As outlined in the consultation government has proposed to maintain a range of exemptions available to landlords to ensure that required investment is fair and proportionate. Government remains committed to taking an evidence-based approach and will consider the balance between supporting tourism and reaching Net Zero goals.

A government response to the consultation will be published in due course.
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Edward Morello:To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if he will make it his policy review the minimum export value for rooftop solar electricity to support investment. \p Michael Shanks: The Smart Export Guarantee (SEG) is a market-led mechanism in which energy suppliers, not government, set both tariff levels and structure. This is designed to encourage innovation and competition in the sector and minimise costs to consumers.

The Government monitors the SEG to ensure it continues to support the Clean Energy Mission. Any introduction of a minimum export price would need to be carefully balanced against potential costs to consumers.
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Lee Anderson:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether their Department has run any (a) recruitment and (b) internship schemes aimed to increase the number of people from underrepresented groups in the workforce in the last year. \p Anna Turley: As set out in the Civil Service People Plan 2024 - 2027, we are committed to ensuring we attract, develop and retain talented people from a diverse range of backgrounds to create a modern Civil Service, now and for the future.

Civil Service recruitment must follow the rules set out in legislation within the Constitutional Reform and Governance Act (CRaGA) 2010 which outlines the requirements to ensure that civil servants are recruited on merit, via fair and open competition.

Going Forward into Employment (GFiE) accredits life chance recruitment pathways across government. GFiE pathways recruit people from a wide range of backgrounds into the Civil Service, including people from low socio-economic backgrounds, prison leavers, veterans, carers and care leavers.

People recruited by GFiE develop skills, gain experience and build a career, contributing to the Opportunity Mission and to the wider economy.

The Cabinet Office participates in the Great Place to Work for Veterans scheme which offers a guaranteed interview if a veteran meets the minimum criteria for the role. The department also welcomes applications from people who have recently left prison or have an unspent conviction for specific offences.

In the last year, the Cabinet Office has participated in internship schemes aimed to increase the number of people from underrepresented groups in the workforce. These were:

Fast Stream Summer Internship Programme (Cabinet Office runs on behalf of the whole Civil Service)

Care Leavers Programme (Run by Department for Education)

Career ready workplace scheme (Run by Cabinet Office Glasgow colleagues)

Cabinet Office/Barnardos internship partnership (Run by Cabinet Office Glasgow colleagues)
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Ben Obese-Jecty:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to page 90 of the Strategic Defence Review 2025, published on 8 July 2025, whether UK plans are coherent with NATO planning. \p Dan Jarvis: The UK’s Home Defence planning is closely aligned and coherent with our obligations associated with NATO plans. The government takes a NATO first approach to defence planning and remains committed to our responsibilities in the alliance. Further details are set out in the Strategic Defence Review, National Security Strategy and Resilience Action Plan.
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Ben Obese-Jecty:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to page 90 of the Strategic Defence Review 2025, published on 8 July 2025, what progress has he made on codifying civilian assistance to military authorities in crisis and conflict. \p Dan Jarvis: Developing plans for civilian assistance to the military in a time of conflict is a key component of the Cabinet Offices Home Defence Programme (HDP). Working with the MoD and across Whitehall departments, the HDP will set a baseline understanding of the requirements of support that defence would need and how positions and roles may need to be backfilled in a conflict scenario. This work is ongoing.
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Mr Richard Holden:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will make an assessment with Cabinet colleagues of the potential impact of the merger of Anglo American and Teck on national security. \p Dan Jarvis: The Government has powers under the National Security and Investment (NSI) Act 2021 to review and, where required, intervene in investments that may pose a risk to national security.

The NSI Act both facilitates investment into sensitive sectors with appropriate safeguards where needed, and provides powers to act in the interests of national security where necessary and proportionate.

Given national security and commercial considerations, the Government will not generally comment on specific acquisitions or the potential applicability of the NSI Act 2021.

Acquisitions considered under the NSI Act are reviewed on a case-by-case basis and the Government will not hesitate to use its powers where necessary.
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Mike Wood:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to the Government Response to the Intelligence and Security Committee of Parliament Report 'IRAN', published in September 2025, CP 1403, what information the Government holds on whether hostile actors from Iran have infiltrated Parliament through parliamentary staffers. \p Dan Jarvis: HMG does not routinely comment on the details of operational matters or specific threats.

However, we take all threats to national security, including those from Iran, incredibly seriously. Whilst the security of Parliament is a matter for the Parliament, HMG will do whatever is needed to help keep our democratic institutions safe from foreign interference and espionage threats.

This includes protecting them from malign Iranian influence activity in the UK, including placing the whole of the Iranian State- including Iran’s intelligence services- on the enhanced tier of the Foreign Influence Registration Scheme. This means that those who are directed by Iran to conduct activities in the UK must register that activity, whatever it is, or face 5 years in prison.

On 13 October, MI5’s National Protective Security Authority published new guidance to better protect the UK’s democratic institutions from all foreign interference and espionage threats.The guidance is designed to help MPs, peers, councillors, Parliamentary staff and candidates understand the threat and take simple, effective steps to protect themselves, their teams, and the integrity of the UK’s democracy.
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Helen Maguire:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of expenditure on marketing the prepare.campaign.gov.uk website on public preparedness in the event of an emergency. \p Dan Jarvis: The Prepare website brings together advice and useful material from a range of sources into one place to help individuals, households and communities prepare for emergencies. The civil service hours were not recorded. The cost of creating the content for the campaign site was £60,000.

Of the unique users recorded between 22nd May 2024 and 13th October 2025, 327,555 were from the UK (92%) and 29,756 were from outside the UK (8%). These figures only include users who accepted GOV.UK cookies.

To date, no paid-for-marketing activity has taken place to promote prepare.campaign.gov.uk. The Government’s Resilience Action Plan has committed to do more to provide households with preparedness information. In September, the Prepare website was included in the message sent out to UK mobile phones as part of the Government’s test of the Emergency Alerts system.

We continue to work with our local and national partners, including organisations from the voluntary, community and faith sectors, to raise awareness of advice on the Prepare website and to seek feedback to inform updates to the content.

The Government is currently considering what further public communications activities might support improvements to public preparedness for emergencies. We published the first annual UK Public Survey of Risk Perception, Resilience and Preparedness in July 2025. The results will be used to inform the development of future public preparedness communications and to monitor trends.
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Ben Obese-Jecty:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to page 39 of the National Security Strategy 2025, published in June 2025, CP 1338, what measures are contained within each pillar of the Strategic Framework in order to bolster overall security with respect to China. \p Dan Jarvis: The three pillars of the National Security Strategy 2025 set out comprehensive measures on how we will bolster the UK's overall security. Our approach to China, as a country that poses both a series of threats to UK national security and significant economic opportunities, necessarily cuts across all three pillars. From pillar one's focus on measures to bolster our security at home, to pillar two's emphasis on direct and high level engagement with China in support of UK interests to pillar three's focus on our international competitiveness and reducing our dependence on others.
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Ben Obese-Jecty:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to page 27 of the National Security Strategy 2025, CP 1338, published on 24 June 2025, when he plans to publish the report on the biological security strategy. \p Dan Jarvis: The Network of Biosecurity Centres will strengthen and formalise the strong existing collaborations between the UK Health Security Agency, the Animal and Plant Health Agency and the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory. It will ensure we are better prepared for a crisis, can respond more effectively when an incident does happen, and deliver a more holistic, One Health and National Security approach to biological research.

The Network will support the Centres’ development and operation, with investment in the laboratory facilities of more than £1bn over the next four years to ensure we have the capabilities we need. Initial steps will include agreeing collaboration priorities, such as operation standards and skills development.

The Cabinet Office oversees implementation of the UK Biological Security Strategy. That includes ensuring we have the capabilities across government to protect the public from a spectrum of biological risks, no matter how they occur and no matter who or what they affect. Funding to tackle specific biological risks is based on the UK ‘Lead Government Department (LGD)’ model. Designated LGDs are responsible for leading work to identify serious risks, and ensuring that the right planning, response and recovery arrangements are in place - including the prioritisation of departmental spending to ensure the right capabilities are in place to mitigate risks, within allocated budgets.

The UK Biological Security Strategy is clear that a thriving life sciences sector is key to our biological security. The government has committed £380 million to engineering biology and £2bn to life sciences over the spending review period.

At the publication of the UK Biological Security Strategy in June 2023, we committed to update Parliament annually on the progress made to implement the Strategy. The government published its first UK Biosecurity Strategy Implementation report in July 2025, which sets out the range of short term commitments delivered. The report is available here.
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Ben Obese-Jecty:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to page 87 of the Strategic Defence Review 2025, published on 8 July 2025, what progress he has made on establishing the Home Defence Programme. \p Dan Jarvis: The Home Defence Programme was established in August 2024 to build the UK’s resilience to any potential escalation to conflict. It is an evolving and enduring programme of work which provides defence, security and resilience planning, focused on aligning military and civil effort in the event of a period of crisis and international hostilities affecting the UK, informed by and reflecting the recommendations from government strategies, including the Strategic Defence Review, National Security Strategy and Resilience Action Plan.
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Mike Wood:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to paragraph 2.43 of the Spring Statement 2025, CP 1298, published on 26 March 2025, how many civil servants have left through the employee exit scheme. \p Anna Turley: Information on the number of civil servants that have left under employee exit schemes is not held centrally.
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Lee Anderson:To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, whether their Department has run any (a) recruitment and (b) internship schemes aimed to increase the number of people from underrepresented groups in the workforce in the last year. \p Hilary Benn: (a) As set out in the Civil Service People Plan 2024-2027, we are committed to ensuring we attract, develop and retain talented people from a diverse range of backgrounds to create a modern Civil Service, now and for the future. Civil Service recruitment must follow the rules set out in legislation within the Constitutional Reform and Governance Act (CRaGA) 2010 which outlines the requirements to ensure that civil servants are recruited on merit, via fair and open competition. Going Forward into Employment (GFiE) accredits life chance recruitment pathways across government. GFiE pathways recruit people from a wide range of backgrounds into the Civil Service, including people from low socio- economic backgrounds, prison leavers, veterans, carers and care leavers. People recruited by GFiE develop skills, gain experience and build a career.

The Northern Ireland Office has not run a GFiE accredited scheme in the last year.

(b) The Northern Ireland Office has not recruited for any internship schemes in the last year.
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Clive Jones:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans his Department has to provide funding for the recruitment and retention of the oncology workforce in the Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire West Integrated Care Board. \p Karin Smyth: Developing our workforce is key to supporting the delivery of effective and sustainable cancer services across England and in local areas, including for the Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire West Integrated Care System.

NHS England invested approximately £90 million on training and educating the cancer and diagnostics workforce throughout 2024/25, focusing on growing the number of specialist doctors, nurses, support workers, and allied health professionals, as well as providing opportunities to upskill those already providing frontline services.

NHS England is also expanding priority medical specialities, including clinical oncologists, medical oncologists, and clinical radiologists. This will aid our ability to recruit and retain the oncology workforce in the Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire West Integrated Care Board.

Following publication of the 10-Year Health Plan, we will publish the new National Cancer Plan, which will include further details on how we will reform the workforce.
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Sir Gavin Williamson:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many and what proportion Integrated Care Boards do not provide funding for IVF services. \p Karin Smyth: All 42 integrated care boards offer at least one cycle of in vitro fertilisation.
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Dr Simon Opher:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the (a) structure and (b) scope is of the cross-Government Health Mission Board. \p Karin Smyth: My Rt Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care chairs a cross-Government Health Mission Board to oversee and drive delivery of the Health Mission to build a health and social care system fit for the future. Mission Boards are Cabinet Committees.

The current membership of the Health Mission Board includes the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster as the Deputy Chair. Other ministers will be invited to meetings according to the agenda.

The Terms of Reference of the Health Mission Board are to oversee and drive delivery of the Health Mission.
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Clive Jones:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much NHS Trusts paid to private companies for (a) outsourcing and (b) locums for radiology services in the most recent period for which information is available. \p Karin Smyth: NHS England does not hold this information centrally.
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Steve Darling:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions his Department has had with NICE on ensuring that patient access to treatment for very rare diseases is not delayed in circumstances where there is uncertainty on the incidence and prevalence of the disease by the consultation entitled Highly specialised technologies: NICE prioritisation board routing criteria. \p Karin Smyth: The Department has regular discussions with the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) about a range of issues, including the criteria for routing topics to the Highly Specialised Technologies (HST) programme.

Decisions on whether medicines should be evaluated through the NICE’s HST programme are taken by the NICE against a set of published criteria that have been developed through public and stakeholder engagement. The NICE is currently reviewing the criteria and opened a consultation in December 2024, with a closing date for comments of 30 January 2025. The proposed criteria are intended to make routing decisions more predictable and transparent with the aim of making the process more timely and efficient. We encourage people to respond to the consultation.

The NICE aims, wherever possible, to issue draft guidance on new medicines close to the time of licensing. The National Health Service in England is legally required to fund drugs recommended by the NICE, usually within three months of final guidance.
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Freddie van Mierlo:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of Integrated Care Boards taking steps to help general practitioners set up new practices. \p Stephen Kinnock: Integrated care boards (ICBs) have a delegated responsibility for planning and commissioning healthcare services to meet the reasonable needs of the people for whom they are responsible. ICBs should evaluate the needs of the populations for which they are responsible, including for general practice services, and plan service provision as required.

ICBs’ annual commissioning plans for general practice (GP) services will consider requirements for new GP practices, for example, in response to population growth, planned contract expiry and management of unplanned closures, as well as the additional local services they wish to commission. The commissioner must decide on the contracting route for new core general practice services and select providers that will deliver the best quality and outcomes. Commissioners sometimes provide additional funding to new practices while they are growing their list sizes to enable them to recover their fixed costs, as most of the funding GP providers receive is related to the number and type of patients they have on their registered list and growing list size may take time.

At the Autumn Budget 2024, we established a dedicated capital fund of £102 million for the next financial year to deliver around 200 upgrades to GP surgeries across England, which will support improved use of existing buildings and space, boosting productivity and enabling delivery of more appointments. This funding represents a first step in delivering the additional capital the primary care sector needs.
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Anna Sabine:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how often he meets with the British Dental Association; and when he last met with that organisation. \p Stephen Kinnock: Ministers meet regularly with external stakeholders on a variety of topics, including but not limited to dentistry. Details of ministerial meetings are published quarterly in arrears on the GOV.UK website.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-01-23)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-01-23 conversation_8

Richard Burgon:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to reduce the number of people with (a) learning disabilities and (b) autism in inpatient units; and what progress she has made on implementing (i) community-based support and )ii) housing solutions to (A) prevent unnecessary admissions and (B) facilitate timely discharge in line with the Transforming Care Programme and Building the Right Support plan. \p Stephen Kinnock: Through our proposed reforms to the Mental Health Act, we want to ensure people with a learning disability and autistic people get the support they need in the community, improve care, and prevent admission to hospitals. We will engage with expert stakeholders to inform implementation planning, including in respect of the development of strong community services.

Investment has been provided each year to enable local areas to develop community intensive support teams, community forensic teams, and crisis response 24 hours a day, seven days a week, for people with a learning disability and autistic people.

For 2024/25, NHS England has allocated £124 million of transformation funding for learning disability and autism services in local integrated care board areas. This funding includes money for local systems to reduce reliance on mental health inpatient settings.

In addition, NHS England has a housing capital programme, with £13 million available in 2025/26, to support areas to develop housing to help reduce the number of autistic people and people with a learning disability in a mental health hospital setting.

We are also providing an immediate in-year uplift to the Disabled Facilities Grant of £86 million in 2024/25. This increase will fund approximately 7,800 additional home adaptations. This is on top of the £625 million paid to local authorities in May 2024.
wrans/answers2025-01-23 conversation_9
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-01-23)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-01-23 conversation_9

Helen Grant:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will issue guidance clarifying the (a) roles and (b) responsibilities of (i) local services and (ii) the third sector in the provision of specialist equipment for disabled children. \p Stephen Kinnock: Integrated care boards (ICBs) in England are responsible for commissioning services to meet the health needs of their local population. NHS England Specialised Commissioning commissions complex disability equipment services, including communication aids, environmental controls, and prosthetics.

We expect ICBs to follow guidance from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE). In 2022, the NICE published the guidance Disabled children and young people up to 25 with severe complex needs: integrated service delivery and organisation across health, social care and education, which is available at the following link:

https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng213/chapter/Recommendations-on-service-organisation-integration-and-commissioning

The Children and Families Act 2014 requires that education, health, and social care services must work together to meet the needs of children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND). In May 2023, NHS England issued statutory guidance setting out the requirement for ICBs to have an Executive Lead for SEND, who will lead on supporting the Chief Executive and the board in ensuring the ICB performs its functions effectively, in the interests of children and young people with SEND.

Local authorities are responsible for providing social care services for disabled children, which can include specialist equipment. The guidance on supporting disabled children and their carers is available at the following link:

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/669e7501ab418ab055592a7b/Working_together_to_safeguard_children_2023.pdf

Further guidance on the roles and responsibilities of different organisations in meeting the needs of children with SEND can be found in the SEND Code of Practice, which is available at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/send-code-of-practice-0-to-25
wrans/answers2025-01-23 conversation_10
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-01-23)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-01-23 conversation_10

Stuart Anderson:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to ensure that veterans in rural areas have access to mental health support services. \p Stephen Kinnock: NHS England commissions Op COURAGE, the integrated mental health and wellbeing service for veterans. Veterans can self-refer to Op COURAGE. The service has been designed to support veterans from all areas, including rural areas, and is delivered from a range of locations, including National Health Service trusts, general practices, Poppy Shops, veteran hubs, and drop-in centres. Elements of the service may also be provided online if this is clinically appropriate.

As set out in the NHS Priorities and Operational Planning Guidance for 2024/25, NHS England is continuing to expand access to mental health services to increase the number of people accessing mental health support. Integrated care boards are responsible for providing health and care services to meet the needs of their local populations, taking into account local considerations such as access to services in rural areas. The Government recognises that too many people are not receiving the mental health care they need, and that waits for mental health services are too long. The Government is determined to change that, and ensure that mental health has the same focus as physical health, to help people in rural areas to access high quality mental health support when they need it.

In addition, people of all ages who are in crisis or who are concerned about a family or loved one can now call 111, select the mental health option, and speak to a trained mental health professional. NHS staff can guide callers with next steps such as organising face-to-face community support or facilitating access to alternative services, like crisis cafés or safe havens, which provide a place for people to stay as an alternative to accident and emergency or a hospital admission.
wrans/answers2025-01-23 conversation_11
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-01-23)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-01-23 conversation_11

Rachel Gilmour:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if his Department will make an assessment of the adequacy of funding levels for NHS Dentists in the South West of England; and if his Department will draw up plans on how to use additional funding for the NHS as announced in the Autumn Budget 2024 to provide more dental appointments in the South West of England. \p Stephen Kinnock: A budget of £3.8 billion for primary, community, and secondary dentistry has been allocated to the integrated care boards (ICBs) across England for 2024/25, to deliver new initiatives and address the challenges facing National Health Service dentistry. Allocations for 2025/26 will be confirmed shortly, and long-term funding will be considered during phase 2 of the Spending Review, which will set budgets for 2026/27 to 2028/29.

The Government plans to tackle the challenges patients face when trying to access NHS dental care with a rescue plan to provide 700,000 more urgent dental appointments, and recruit new dentists to the areas that need them most.

Responsibility for commissioning primary care dentistry to meet the needs of the local population has been delegated to the ICBs across England. For the Tiverton and Minehead constituency, this is the NHS Somerset ICB.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-01-23)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-01-23 conversation_12

Clive Jones:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when the data on the number of general practitioners employed through the Additional Roles Reimbursement Scheme will be available. \p Stephen Kinnock: Information on the number of recently qualified general practitioners (GPs) for which primary care networks are claiming reimbursement via the Additional Roles Reimbursement Scheme (ARRS) is currently being collated. We are working to verify the data and establish its reliability, which is necessary before any dataset can be published. Between 31 July 2024 and 30 November 2024, the headcount of fully qualified GPs increased by 831.

The Government has delivered an £82 million boost to the ARRS over 2024/25 to enable the recruitment of over 1,000 newly qualified GPs. My Rt. Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, has confirmed that recently qualified GPs who are employed via the ARRS will continue to be supported through the scheme in 2025/26.
wrans/answers2025-01-23 conversation_13
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-01-23)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-01-23 conversation_13

Rupert Lowe:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of conducting a study of the impact of rape gang grooming on the long-term (a) physical and (b) mental health of victims. \p Andrew Gwynne: We know that children who experience violence or abuse can suffer from a range of physical and mental health issues over the course of their lifetime, and some may go on to become perpetrators themselves.

The Department funds research on health and social care through the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR). It funds a range of research related to the health and social care needs of survivors of sexual violence and abuse. It also funds the infrastructure of the James Lind Alliance. The alliance works with survivors of sexual abuse as well as health and social care professionals to identify urgent research priorities in the area. The NIHR welcomes funding applications for research into any aspect of health and care, including the impact of grooming and sexual exploitation.
wrans/answers2025-01-23 conversation_14
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-01-23)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-01-23 conversation_14

Rupert Lowe:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department has allocated funding for victims of grooming gangs. \p Andrew Gwynne: NHS England and the police and crime commissioners jointly commission 48 sexual assault referral centres (SARCs) for victims of sexual assault and abuse. SARCs provide crisis care, medical and forensic examinations, emergency contraception, and testing for sexually transmitted infections. They can also arrange access to an independent sexual assault advisor, as well as referrals to mental health support services.

NHS England has established local pathfinder projects for enhanced trauma-informed mental health support for sexual abuse victims and survivors with the most complex needs. There is now dedicated enhanced mental health support in five of the seven commissioning regions. The final two regions are considering delivery model options.
wrans/answers2025-01-23 conversation_15
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-01-23)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-01-23 conversation_15

Rupert Lowe:To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what role NHS Trusts have in (a) identifying and (b) reporting suspected incidences of child grooming by organised gangs. \p Andrew Gwynne: Every National Health Service trust has a contractual obligation to adhere to the NHS Safeguarding Accountability and Assurance Framework 2024, which includes the protection of children from abuse, harm, or violence.

In addition, every registered health professional working across the NHS has a professional duty of care to protect children from abuse, harm, or violence.

The data on reported grooming by gangs is not captured by NHS England but would be held confidentially between each NHS trust and the local police.