Asked by: Lord Bradley (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what, if any, actions they intend to take to ensure that people suffering from mental health crises are not taken to a police custody suite.
Answered by Lord Markham - Shadow Minister (Science, Innovation and Technology)
We have announced the development of a new National Partnership Agreement between policing and health partners to ensure that the right agency responds to a mental health incident, removing police involvement earlier in the process where it’s not needed. This will support roll-out of the Right Care, Right Person approach, under which police will only engage in a mental health incident when there is a real and immediate risk to life or serious harm.
We have already achieved a significant reduction in the number of people taken to a police cell as a place of safety in recent years. In 2021/22 a police station was used as a place of safety 254 times in England out of a total of 36,594 Section 136 incidents. This represents less than 1% of incidents and is down from an estimated 8,667 times out of a total of 23,907 such incidents in 2011/12. The Draft Mental Health Bill contains provisions to remove police stations as a place of safety, so that people held under Section 136 will be in more appropriate health-based settings when in crisis or waiting for a place on a specialist ward. The Bill will be introduced when parliamentary time allows.
On 23 January 2023 we set out details on how £150 million of capital investment, first announced in the 2021 Spending Review, will be used to build mental health urgent and emergency care infrastructure. This includes £7 million for specialised mental health ambulances across the country to provide better care and support for people experiencing a mental health crisis.
We are also funding over 160 wider capital schemes including to provide and improve crisis cafes, crisis houses, mental health urgent care centres, health-based places of safety and broader improvements to crisis lines and emergency departments. This will mean care can be provided in more appropriate spaces for those in need, and will reduce pressure on wider parts of the system including accident and emergency.
Asked by: Lord Bradley (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government when they expect the report of the National Women’s Prisons Health and Social Care Review to be published.
Answered by Lord Markham - Shadow Minister (Science, Innovation and Technology)
NHS England has advised that they are working with their partners to finalise the review and anticipate publication will be during the Summer of 2023.
Asked by: Lord Bradley (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government, with reference to the Mental Health Act 1983, what plans they have to increase the capacity of (1) places of safety, (2) section 136 suites, and (3) crisis care units, in each Integrated Care Board area in England.
Answered by Lord Markham - Shadow Minister (Science, Innovation and Technology)
On 23 January 2023, we set out details on how £150 million of capital investment, first announced at the 2021 Spending Review, will be used to improve mental health urgent and emergency care infrastructure. This includes funding for 150 schemes across the country on a fair shares basis, reaching all 42 integrated care boards.
This will support the building and expanding of capacity for health-based places of safety, section 136 suites and mental health assessment, care and treatment units. It will also support crisis cafes, crisis houses and broader improvements to crisis lines and accident and emergency departments, as well as the procurement of up to 100 specialised mental health ambulances over the next two years. This will provide care in more appropriate spaces for those experiencing a mental health crisis and will reduce pressure on wider parts of the healthcare system.
Asked by: Lord Bradley (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what are the names of the ordinary members on each Integrated Care Board; and for each member, what (1) knowledge, and (2) experience, they have relating to the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of mental illness.
Answered by Lord Markham - Shadow Minister (Science, Innovation and Technology)
Integrated care boards (ICBs) are required to publish the list of ICB board members including ordinary members in accordance with the Health and Care Act 2022. ICBs have made the information publicly available on its websites regarding board members including expertise and knowledge. Details of ICB board membership is not held by Government in a central record.
Asked by: Lord Bradley (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government how much of the £2.3 billion earmarked for Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services has now been invested in those services; and, of that amount, how much has been allocated to local authority Children's Services to support children in care.
Answered by Lord Markham - Shadow Minister (Science, Innovation and Technology)
This information is not held in the format requested. However, local commissioners will determine how this funding will be used to meet the health needs of the local population.
Asked by: Lord Bradley (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many permanent full-time equivalent (FTE) healthcare staff are currently in post for each prison in England and Wales; and what is the target number of FTE healthcare staff in each case.
Answered by Lord Markham - Shadow Minister (Science, Innovation and Technology)
This information is not held centrally. National Health Service regional commissioners hold contracts with a number of healthcare providers to deliver health services within each prison. While the contract specifies the services which should be provided, it may not stipulate the number of staff which should be employed or the specific roles of health professionals to fulfil those services.
Asked by: Lord Bradley (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the letter from Lord Kamall on 10 May in response to Written Question HL7920, (1) how many, and (2) what percentage, of the expanded clinical psychology intake for each of the past two years who are relevantly qualified are expected to work with adults and children with cystic fibrosis.
Answered by Lord Kamall - Shadow Minister (Health and Social Care)
The information requested is not held centrally.
Asked by: Lord Bradley (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure that (1) children, and (2) adults, diagnosed with cystic fibrosis have access to both clinical psychologist and social worker resources through their multidisciplinary team, as set out in the NHS service specification for adult and paediatric care.
Answered by Lord Kamall - Shadow Minister (Health and Social Care)
It has not proved possible to respond to this question in the time available before Prorogation. Ministers will correspond directly with the Member.
Asked by: Lord Bradley (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how much they have spent on drug rehabilitation for (1) men, and (2) women, in prison, in (a) England, and (b) Wales, in each year since 2010.
Answered by Lord Kamall - Shadow Minister (Health and Social Care)
The information is not held in the format requested. Due to the way NHS England commissions integrated services across the secure and detained estate, it is not possible to determine specific expenditure on mental health services and substance misuse services.
In England, spending on health services in prisons has increased from £400 million in 2016/17 to approximately £496 million in 2020/21. Integrated spending on substance misuse and mental health services in prisons has increased from £148 million in 2016/17 to £203 million in 2020/21. This expenditure relates to both the male and female adult secure estate.
Information on health care spending in Wales is not held as this is a devolved matter.