Every parliamentary written question tabled by Ashley Fox this session, with the full answer and department. Back to the MP page.
Showing 21–30 of 30 · Department of Health and Social Care
Whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of alternatives to Fixed Recoverable Costs for lower-value clinical negligence claims.
Currently, the Government is considering the way forward on a wide range of matters, including clinical negligence costs reform, and we will announce our position in due course.
What assessment he has made of the impact of introducing Fixed Recoverable Costs in clinical negligence on vulnerable people’s ability to access justice.
Currently, the Government is considering the way forward on a wide range of matters, including clinical negligence costs reform, and we will announce our position in due course.
What steps his Department is taking to help improve public awareness of (a) the importance of early diagnosis of chronic kidney disease and (b) recognition of early symptoms.
NHS England is working to detect people at risk of kidney disease through the NHS Health Check Programme. The programme, which is available for everyone between the ages of 40 and 74 years old, who is not already on a chronic disease register, assesses people’s health and risk of developing certain health problems. Using this information, patients are supported to make behavioural changes and access treatment which helps to prevent and detect kidney disease earlier.The UK National Screening Committee (UK NSC) reviewed chronic kidney disease (CKD) and glomerulonephritis in 2011, concluding that a population-wide screening programme would not be recommended. The UK NSC has not looked at the evidence for a targeted programme. The UK NSC can be alerted to any new published peer-reviewed evidence which may suggest the case for a new screening programme. More information is available at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/uk-nsc-annual-call-submitting-a-screening-proposal/uk-nsc-annual-call-how-to-submit-a-proposalThe National Health Service provides access to tests and therapies to diagnose, code, and treat patients with early-stage CKD. NHS England, through the Renal Services Transformation Programme (RSTP) and regional renal networks, is implementing initiatives to provide better integrated care, reduce health inequalities, and focus on prevention and timely intervention for kidney disease. Regional renal clinical networks prioritise CKD diagnosis and prevention within their transformation ambitions, facilitating earlier treatment. This includes considerations to develop a unified approach to testing populations at risk of developing CKD, and includes raising awareness of diagnostic tools like urine albumin creatinine tests, enabling CKD diagnosis at stages 1 and 2. NHS England aims to improve awareness and access to these important urine and blood tests across primary and secondary care. In addition, RSTP launched a renal toolkit earlier last year, for use by systems, that outlines principles to support better management of patients identified with CKD throughout their patient journey.The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidance, Chronic kidney disease: Assessment and management [NG203], updated in November 2021, sets out best practice for clinicians in the diagnosis and management of CKD. The guidance covers the care and treatment of patients at risk of CKD. It includes recommendations on monitoring of patients at risk of CKD and aims to prevent or delay the progression of the disease. The guidance is available at the following link:https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng203
How much was spent on (a) new furniture and fittings and (b) other refurbishment of Ministerial offices in his Department since the dissolution of the last Parliament; and on what items this was spent.
The Department has not spent any money on new furniture, fittings, or refurbishment of ministerial offices since the dissolution of the last Parliament.
How many civil servants are assigned to work in each of his Department's offices; and how many desks are available in each office.
The following table shows the number civil servants assigned to work in each of the Department's offices, as well as how many desks are available in each office:LocationStaff assigned to officeDesks available to the Department in each officeLondon2,302858Leeds840500Bristol4434Birmingham3824Liverpool3723Cambridge3368Burnley2532Nottingham2124Manchester1810Newcastle1419Reading58Edinburgh44
How many and what proportion of desks were occupied in each of his Department’s offices in the most recent four weeks for which figures are available; and how many staff attended each office in person in the same period.
The following table shows the percentage of desks that were occupied in the most recent four weeks at our London headquarters on Victoria Street, as we do not routinely collect occupancy data in our other offices:Week CommencingPercentage of desks occupied2 September 202476%9 September 202481%16 September 202479%23 September 202474% The Department does not record staff office attendance and just measures office occupancy.
What steps his Department is taking to support (a) local authorities and (b) integrated care boards to meet the requirements of Section 117 of the Mental Health Act 1983.
It is important that eligible individuals receive the aftercare they are entitled to under section 117 of the Mental Health Act 1983, in order for them to stay well and to prevent readmission or detention.The Discharge from Mental Health Inpatient Settings statutory guidance, published in January 2024, supports local authorities and integrated care boards to meet the requirements of section 117. It provides clarity in relation to how health and care systems can work together to support discharge from all mental health inpatient settings and ensure the right support in the community. It includes best practice on how patients and carers should be involved in discharge planning, and additional guidance on how budgets and responsibilities are shared to pay for aftercare under section 117. The guidance is available at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/discharge-from-mental-health-inpatient-settingsThis year the National Health Service and local authorities are receiving £1 billion through the Discharge Fund. Local authorities and NHS integrated care boards have the flexibility to spend this investment in ways they deem most appropriate for their local area.More broadly, we are committed to building consensus on the long-term reform needed to create a National Care Service based on consistent national standards. We will set out next steps for a process that engages with adult social care stakeholders, including cross-party and people with lived experience of care.
What estimate he has made of the cost to the Care Quality Commission of (a) inspecting and (b) rating private care providers who have not been rated in the last four years.
The Care Quality Commission’s (CQC) cost over the last four years for fee funded activity was between £220 million and £230 million. The CQC doesn’t break down the cost of activity between private and public providers, however, as shown in the CQC’s Annual report and accounts 2022/23, approximately 50% of the CQC’s income comes from private providers, as specified on page 16 of the report. The CQC’s accounts report for 2022/23 is available at the following link:https://www.cqc.org.uk/annual-report-and-accounts-202223The CQC’s fees are for the cost of regulation, rather than solely for the volume of inspection activity, therefore, the information is not available in the format requested.We recognise that Dr Penelope Dash’s interim report says that updating ratings can be too slow. The CQC is working with Professor Sir Mike Richards and Professor Vic Rayner, the Chair of the Care Provider Alliance, to review longer-term improvements to their single assessment framework and how they use it. Other changes to the single assessment framework, such as how CQC score quality statements will allow the CQC to assess and inspect more services while ensuring their ratings are robust. Over the next four weeks the CQC will begin external engagement on aspects of the Single Assessment Framework that require rapid activity to ensure stakeholders are involved and shaping the CQC’s response to the recommendations.
Whether his Department plans to take steps to ensure that private care providers are Regularly (a) inspected and (b) rated by the Care Quality Commission.
The Department has taken steps to ensure that all providers registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC), including private care providers are regularly assessed and rated by the CQC.The interim findings and recommendations made by Dr Penny Dash as part of her review include a clear need for the CQC to increase operational activity. Work is underway to increase the number of inspections the CQC carries out, this includes inspections of private care providers, so the public have an up-to-date understanding of quality and providers are able to demonstrate improvement.The CQC is working with Professor Sir Mike Richards and Professor Vic Rayner, the Chair of the Care Provider Alliance, to review longer-term improvements to their single assessment framework and how they use it. Other changes to the single assessment framework, such as how CQC score quality statements will allow the CQC to assess and inspect more services while ensuring their ratings are robust. This will also allow the CQC to produce better reports that are clearer about their judgements and ratings.The CQC reports to the Department regularly on their improvement work, and wider responses to the interim Dash review.
What steps his Department is taking to raise awareness of the symptoms of Chiari malformation with NHS practitioners.
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has produced guidance on the recognition and referral of suspected neurological conditions, which was last updated in October 2023. This guideline covers the initial assessment of symptoms and signs that might indicate a neurological condition, such as Chiari malformation. It helps non-specialist healthcare professionals to identify people who should be offered referral for specialist investigation.The Royal College of General Practitioners has also produced an e-learning module on the recognition and referral of suspected neurological conditions, to raise awareness of these conditions and their associated symptoms amongst general practitioners.At the national level, there are several initiatives supporting service improvement and better care for patients with neurological conditions such as Chiari malformation, including the Getting It Right First Time Programme for Neurology. NHS England has also established a Neurology Service Transformation Programme, a multi-year, clinically-led programme to develop a new model of integrated care for neurology services.