Every parliamentary written question tabled by Damian Hinds this session, with the full answer and department. See how every department answers, or back to the MP page.
Showing 1–20 of 61 · Department of Health and Social Care
Further to the answer to WPQ 14794 received on 8th July, what estimate he has made of the cash amount of his Department's funding contribution to the Department for Education for the Primary PE and Sport Premium, and the new PE and School Sport Partnerships Network, in (i) 2023/4, (ii) 2024/5, (iii) 2025/6 and (iv) 2026/7.
Awaiting answer.
What estimate he has made of his Department’s contribution to the Department for Education to support exercise and other health-related activity in schools in (i) 2023/4, (ii) 2024/5, (iii) 2025/6 and (iv) 2026/7.
Awaiting answer.
What performance indicators his department uses for the Mental Health Support Teams in schools programme.
Awaiting answer.
What interaction at a local level Mental Health Support Teams are expected to have with Local Authorities and Academy Trusts on improving school attendance.
Awaiting answer.
For the Basingstoke & North Hampshire Hospital, Basingstoke, for each of (a) February, (b) March and (c) April in (i) 2024, (ii) 2025 and (iii ) 2026, what was the average daily number of (A) total
The information requested is not available in the format specified.The Department does not hold No Criteria to Reside data at a hospital level.Data on the average daily number of adult general and acute beds and average daily number of adult patients with...
For the Queen Alexandra Hospital, Portsmouth, for each of (a) February, (b) March and (c) April in (i) 2024, (ii) 2025 and (iii) 2026, what was the average daily number of (A) total adult in-patien
The information requested is not available in the format specified.The Department does not hold No Criteria to Reside data at a hospital level.Data on the average daily number of adult general and acute beds and average daily number of adult patients with...
For the Royal Hampshire County Hospital, Winchester, for each of (a) February, (b) March and (c) April in (i) 2024, (ii) 2025 and (iii) 2026, what was the average daily number of (A) total adult in
The information requested is not available in the format specified.The Department does not hold No Criteria to Reside data at a hospital level.Data on the average daily number of adult general and acute beds and average daily number of adult patients with...
How many and what proportion GPs were not in General Practice in England one year after receipt of their Certificate of Completion of Training in each of the most recent five years for which data are available.
Thanks to actions taken by the Government, we have the highest number of fully qualified general practitioners (GPs) since 2015, at 30,038 full time equivalent in February 2026. Leaver rates also remain low by historical standards, at 7.5% in December 2024 to December 2025.The following table shows the total and proportion of Specialty Trainee Year 3 (ST3) GPs not seen in the National Workforce Reporting Service (NWRS) within one year of the last appearance in the ST3 role, from March 2020 to December 2024:Quarter last seen in ST3 role (year/month)Total ST3 GPs not yet seen in NWRS within one year of last appearance in ST3 roleProportion of ST3 GPs not seen in NWRS within one year of last appearance in ST3 role2020/038444%2020/0662144%2020/0918750%2020/1227853%2021/0316655%2021/0679651%2021/0926463%2021/1229254%2022/0318258%2022/0676252%2022/0924660%2022/1231052%2023/0321556%2023/0674046%2023/0927051%2023/1229844%2024/0321653%2024/0668138%2024/0926240%2024/1233143% Notes:the quarter in which a GP was last seen in an ST3 role is an approximation for the date on which they qualified. This means that the figures will include some doctors who have not entered the qualified GP workforce as they discontinued their GP training in ST3, or have taken a leave of absence at ST3 level, for example for maternity/paternity leave or because they have failed their exams and do not qualify; andfully qualified GPs in NWRS data are GP Partners, Salaried GPs, GP Regular Locums, and GP Retainers. Ad-hoc locums, locum or sessional GPs who typically work briefly at practices to cover for short-term or unexpected absences, are not included since information about them is captured in a different way to the rest of the workforce.
If she will make an assessment of the potential implications for her policies on community pharmacies of (a) business rates revaluation from April 2026 and (b) their exclusion from RHL reliefs.
The Government recognises that pharmacies are an integral ‘front door’ to the National Health Service, staffed by highly trained and skilled healthcare professionals.In 2025/26, funding for the core community pharmacy contractual framework has been increased to £3.073 billion. This represents the largest uplift in funding of any part of the NHS, over 19% across 2024/25 and 2025/26. Additional funding is also available, for example for pharmacies delivering Pharmacy First consultations and flu and COVID-19 vaccinations.The Department will shortly consult with Community Pharmacy England on any proposed changes to reimbursement and remuneration of pharmacy contractors for 2026/27. As part of this we will consider financial pressures on the sector.
What steps he is planning to take to ensure the exchange of best practice among Healthcare Trusts from their deployment of Mental Health Support Teams.
The Department of Health and Social Care, along with NHS England and the Department for Education, jointly provide guidance and support to providers and commissioners of Mental Health Support Teams (MHST). This includes both the implementation of new teams and improving the quality and effectiveness of existing teams.A national MHST Community of Practice has also been established, hosted by NHS England, with examples of best practice routinely made available to providers and commissioners.
Whether he plans to conduct a post-implementation review of the potential impact of the early waves of deployment of Mental Health Support Teams on schools.
The Department has no plans to conduct a post-implementation review of the potential impact of the early waves of deployment of Mental Health Support Teams on schools. In July 2025, the National Children’s Bureau published an independent Mental Health Support Teams evaluation report, Evaluating the implementation of the Transforming Children and Young People’s Mental Health Provision Green Paper programme. The impacts and other details are set out in the report, which is available at the following link: https://www.ncb.org.uk/sites/default/files/uploads/attachments/CYP%20MH%20GP%20survey%202024%20report%20-%20Mundy%20et%20al%20%282025%29.pdf
What estimate he has made of the potential of (a) business rates revaluation and (b) the new multiplier bands from April 2026 on (i) NHS hospitals (ii) other NHS facilities and (ii) facilities of other services contracted to the NHS.
No additional funding has been made to National Health Service hospital trusts as a result of business rates revaluation and the new multiplier bands from April 2026. However, the Government uses the Market Forces Factor (MFF) within the NHS payment scheme to account for the higher business rates that providers in high-value areas pay. This mechanism adjusts resource allocations to ensure fairness across different regions. So increased costs will feed into the MFF and allocations.NHS England has not made an assessment of the business rates revaluation and the new multiplier bands on the NHS. However, NHS England does have regular conversations with NHS hospitals to understand their financial position against the plan and will work with them to address any specific issues raised.
Whether funding for NHS hospital trusts will be adjusted as a result of business rates revaluation and the new multiplier bands from April 2026.
No additional funding has been made to National Health Service hospital trusts as a result of business rates revaluation and the new multiplier bands from April 2026. However, the Government uses the Market Forces Factor (MFF) within the NHS payment scheme to account for the higher business rates that providers in high-value areas pay. This mechanism adjusts resource allocations to ensure fairness across different regions. So increased costs will feed into the MFF and allocations.NHS England has not made an assessment of the business rates revaluation and the new multiplier bands on the NHS. However, NHS England does have regular conversations with NHS hospitals to understand their financial position against the plan and will work with them to address any specific issues raised.
For each wave of Mental Health Support Teams up to Wave 12, what the anticipated ratio of FTE clinical staff (a) was and (b) is in the Mental Health Support Team to pupil numbers in the schools covered.
Mental Health Support Teams (MHSTs) typically comprise of approximately eight full-time equivalent (FTE) clinical staff. Each team was anticipated to cover a population of between 8,000 and 8,500 children and young people. This figure refers to the total population covered by an MHST, not the number of children and young people receiving direct care.The most recent coverage analysis indicates that MHSTs support an average population of approximately 8,300 children and young people. This equates to a current estimated ratio of FTE clinical staff to children and young people of approximately 1:1,037.In July 2025, the National Children’s Bureau published an independent MHST evaluation report, Evaluating the implementation of the Transforming Children and Young People’s Mental Health Provision Green Paper programme. According to survey data published as part of this report, 86% of respondents in schools and colleges were satisfied or very satisfied with the direct interventions that the MHST provided for pupils/students or families. The evaluation report is available at the following link:https://www.ncb.org.uk/what-we-do/practice-and-programmes/building-integrated-child-centred-health-services/mental-2
If he will publish a national strategy for palliative and end of life care.
The Government is developing a Palliative Care and End of Life Care Modern Service Framework for England. I refer the Rt. Hon. Member to the Written Ministerial Statement HCWS1087, which I gave to the House on 24 November 2025.
Pursuant to the Answer of 21 October 2025 to Question 905924 on Health Services: Rehabilitation, what the percentage numbers were for causes of delayed discharge for (a) Hampshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and (b) Portsmouth Hospitals University NHS Trust in each month of 2025.
There is no data on discharge delays relating to rehabilitation alone, but information on the reasons for delayed discharges are published monthly by NHS England and are available at the following link:https://www.england.nhs.uk/statistics/statistical-work-areas/discharge-delays/acute-discharge-situation-report/The tables attached show the proportion of delayed discharges where the primary reason for the delay was related to securing rehabilitation, reablement, or recovery services, for patients with a length of stay of 14 days or over, each month between January 2025 and September 2025 for the Hampshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and the Portsmouth Hospitals University NHS Trust. These delays were either linked to capacity constraints or occurred during the brokerage processes at the interface between the National Health Service, local authorities, social care and/or housing partners.Please note that unlike the response to Question 905924, we have provided data for patients with length of stays of 14 days or more, as the seven day or more length of stay data is only available from the September 2025 publication.To support trusts with reducing delayed discharges, the Government published a new policy framework in January 2025 for the £9 billion Better Care Fund, which provides the NHS and local authorities accountability for setting and achieving joint goals for reducing discharge delays and preventing avoidable emergency admissions and care home admission. Some challenged systems in need of additional support are also receiving a programme of improvement support.
Pursuant to his Answer of 21 October 2025 to Question 905924, what the equivalent percentage numbers were for other causes of delayed discharge in (a) Hampshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and (b) Portsmouth Hospitals University NHS Trust.
Information on the other causes of delayed discharge has been published by NHS England, and is available at the following link:https://www.england.nhs.uk/statistics/statistical-work-areas/discharge-delays/acute-discharge-situation-report/The following table shows the proportion of delayed discharges for patients with a length of stay of seven days or longer in September 2025, by primary reason for discharge delay, for the Hampshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and the Portsmouth Hospitals University NHS Trust: Hampshire Hospitals NHS Foundation TrustPortsmouth Hospitals University NHS TrustHospital Process24%7%Wellbeing Concerns5%7%Care Transfer Hub Process19%16%Interface Process40%43%Capacity13%26%Weekly average snapshot of the total number of people per day with a length of stay of seven or more days who no had criteria to reside but who weren’t discharged142222Note: proportions do not add up to 100% due to rounding.To support trusts with reducing delayed discharges, the Government published a new policy framework in January 2025 for the £9 billion Better Care Fund, which provides the National Health Service and local authorities with accountability for setting and achieving joint goals for reducing discharge delays, preventing avoidable emergency admissions and care home admission. Some challenged systems in need of additional support are also receiving a programme of improvement support.
What assessment he has made of the adequacy of the provision of step-down care in East Hampshire constituency.
This Government is committed to tackling delayed discharges to free up hospital beds, ensure people do not spend longer than necessary in hospital and, where safe and supported to do so, can recover well at home. To support this, we have provided around £9billion through the Better Care Fund, including £179million in Hampshire.In September, Hampshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust reported step-down intermediate care capacity as the primary reason of delay for 6% of patients with delayed discharge and at least a 7-day length of stay. For Portsmouth Hospitals University NHS Trust this was 13%, both lower than the England average of 14%.
If he will make an assessment of the potential merits of working with comparator countries to understand causal factors in trends of mental health disorders in children and young people.
Whilst there has not been a formal assessment of the trends in children and young people’s mental health problems in England compared to other countries, work continues with partners across the United Kingdom and internationally on a range of issues relating to mental health, including mental health disorders in children and young people.Through resources such as the Global Burden of Disease study, we closely monitor international policy developments in mental health to harness insights. For example, the six new 24/7 neighbourhood mental health centres being piloted across England are inspired by the community model of mental health care originally pioneered in Trieste, Italy.Estimates of the rates and trends in the prevalence of adults’ and children and young people’s mental health problems are reported in the Adult Psychiatric Morbidity Survey series and the Mental Health of Children and Young People Survey series.
What assessment he has made of the trend of mental health disorders in children and young people in England in relation to the trend in poor mental health in adults.
Whilst there has not been a formal assessment of the trends in children and young people’s mental health problems in England compared to other countries, work continues with partners across the United Kingdom and internationally on a range of issues relating to mental health, including mental health disorders in children and young people.Through resources such as the Global Burden of Disease study, we closely monitor international policy developments in mental health to harness insights. For example, the six new 24/7 neighbourhood mental health centres being piloted across England are inspired by the community model of mental health care originally pioneered in Trieste, Italy.Estimates of the rates and trends in the prevalence of adults’ and children and young people’s mental health problems are reported in the Adult Psychiatric Morbidity Survey series and the Mental Health of Children and Young People Survey series.