To match an exact phrase, use quotation marks around the search term. eg. "Parliamentary Estate". Use "OR" or "AND" as link words to form more complex queries.


Keep yourself up-to-date with the latest developments by exploring our subscription options to receive notifications direct to your inbox

Written Question
Mental Health Services: Children and Young People
Tuesday 6th February 2024

Asked by: Tim Farron (Liberal Democrat - Westmorland and Lonsdale)

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if she will make an assessment of the potential impact of trends in the number of crisis referrals to child and adolescent mental health services on the standard of therapeutic provision for under-18s in south Cumbria.

Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)

There are no plans to make such an assessment at national level. We would expect National Health Service providers and commissioners to provide services in line with guidance from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence. The standard of therapeutic provision for children under 18 years old in South Cumbria is a matter for the Lancashire and South Cumbria Integrated Care Board.


Written Question
Mental Health Services: Waiting Lists
Tuesday 6th February 2024

Asked by: Tim Farron (Liberal Democrat - Westmorland and Lonsdale)

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many and what proportion of young people in South Cumbria identified as highly complex or at high risk to self or others are on the waiting list for (a) cognitive behavioural therapy, (b) psychology and (c) family therapy as of 29 January 2024.

Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)

This information is not held in the format requested.


Written Question
Hospitals: Admissions
Tuesday 6th February 2024

Asked by: Tim Farron (Liberal Democrat - Westmorland and Lonsdale)

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what information her Department holds on the number of young people who were admitted to a paediatric ward in mental health crisis in each month in 2023.

Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)

This information is not held in the format requested.


Written Question
Autism: Health Services
Tuesday 6th February 2024

Asked by: Tim Farron (Liberal Democrat - Westmorland and Lonsdale)

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps she is taking to support young people with autism in South Cumbria.

Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)

It is the responsibility of integrated care boards (ICBs) to make available appropriate provision to meet the health and care needs of their local population, including services to support autistic young people, in line with relevant clinical guidelines.

NHS Lancashire and South Cumbria ICB has several commissioned services in place currently to support autistic young people and their families and has invested over £3.7 million in 2023/24 in such services. This includes an online advice and guidance service, Autism Unlocked, which has been developed for autistic people and their families, including children and young people and their parents and carers. For children on the assessment pathway for autism, the ICB has also commissioned Pathway Navigators who contact families on the assessment pathway to provide ongoing support, signposting, and resources to families.

In addition, a key worker service has been available in Lancashire and South Cumbria since 2021 to support autistic children and young people or those with a learning disability at risk of mental health hospital admission, or those in in-patient settings.

Nationally, we are taking steps to improve autism services. NHS England published a national framework and operational guidance for autism assessment services on 5 April 2023. These documents are intended to help the National Health Service improve autism assessment services and improve the experience for adults and children who are going through an autism assessment. They also set out what support should be available before an assessment and what support should follow a recent diagnosis of autism. To meet the recommendations in this guidance, NHS Lancashire and South Cumbria ICB is currently undertaking a review of existing provision to inform the development of an integrated neurodevelopmental pathway, including autism and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

In 2023/24, £4.2 million is available nationally to improve services for autistic children and young people, including autism assessment services, pre and post diagnostic support, and the continuation of the ‘Autism in Schools’ programme. Autism in Schools is a national project, which is being implemented locally by NHS Lancashire and South Cumbria ICB, which aims to ensure schools offer environments in which autistic students can thrive, supporting good mental health and promoting a sense of belonging.


Written Question
Accident and Emergency Departments: Mental Health
Tuesday 6th February 2024

Asked by: Tim Farron (Liberal Democrat - Westmorland and Lonsdale)

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what information her Department holds on the number of young people who presented at an ambulance and emergency department in mental health crisis in each month in 2023.

Answered by Helen Whately - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

The information requested is not collected centrally.


Written Question
NHS: Databases
Friday 15th December 2023

Asked by: Tim Farron (Liberal Democrat - Westmorland and Lonsdale)

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the award criteria were for the Federated Data Platform contract.

Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

NHS England conducted an open and competitive tender process for the Federated Data Programme. The evaluation criteria consisted of three parts:

- quality (technical), making up 60%;

- social value (10%); and

- commercial (30%).

These details are set out in the NHS Federated Data Platform and Associated Services prospectus which provides further information about the procurement process followed, and is available at the following link:

https://www.england.nhs.uk/publication/nhs-federated-data-platform-and-associated-services/

The full evaluation criteria and scoring methodology was published as part of the complete tender documentation on NHS England’s e-tendering system.


Written Question
Sepsis: Hospitals
Monday 23rd October 2023

Asked by: Tim Farron (Liberal Democrat - Westmorland and Lonsdale)

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many and what proportion of cases where patients that developed sepsis in hospital have resulted in (a) permanent impairment and (b) death in the last 12 months.

Answered by Will Quince

The Government does not hold information on the number and proportion of cases where patients that developed sepsis in hospital have resulted in permanent impairment or death. According to the Office for National Statistics, there were 25,542 deaths from sepsis in 2022.

Over recent years, the National Health Service has become much better at spotting and treating sepsis quickly. This means that more people are being identified as at risk of sepsis. Healthcare providers are encouraged to adopt the National Early Warning Score (NEWS2), which supports clinicians to identify and respond to patients at risk of acute deterioration, including those with suspected sepsis. Since 2019, NEWS2 has been implemented in 100% of ambulance trusts and all but one acute trust in England.


Written Question
Dental Services: North of England
Friday 20th October 2023

Asked by: Tim Farron (Liberal Democrat - Westmorland and Lonsdale)

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many and what proportion of people registered with an NHS dentist are within the (a) Lancashire and South Cumbria Integrated Care Board and (b) North East and North Cumbria Integrated Care System as of 13 October 2023.

Answered by Neil O'Brien

Patients in England are not registered with a National Health Service dental practice, although many of these practices do tend to see patients regularly. NHS dental practices are contracted to deliver activity and to deliver a course of treatment to an individual irrelevant of where they live, rather than to provide ongoing regular care. This means that there is no geographical restriction on which practice a patient may attend, allowing patients the choice of where they would like to receive a course of treatment.


Written Question
Food Standards Agency: Staff
Monday 10th July 2023

Asked by: Tim Farron (Liberal Democrat - Westmorland and Lonsdale)

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many staff have been employed by the Food Standards Agency in each of the last five years.

Answered by Neil O'Brien

The following table shows in each of the last five years, the headcount for the Food Standards Agency (FSA).

Year Headcount

2019 1181.4

2020 1247.5

2021 1291.8

2022 1431.1

2023 1537.1

The following table shows in each of the last five years, the headcount of the National Food Crime Unit.

Year Headcount

2019 66.6

2020 70.1

2021 75.3

2022 77.3

2023 77.2

The above figures include all staff on FSA Payroll on the last day of March in each of the financial years and include casual employees and loans and secondments where FSA is paying greater than 50% of the salary but exclude Board and Committee members.


Written Question
National Food Crime Unit: Staff
Monday 10th July 2023

Asked by: Tim Farron (Liberal Democrat - Westmorland and Lonsdale)

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many staff worked in the National Food Crime Unit in each of the last five years.

Answered by Neil O'Brien

The following table shows in each of the last five years, the headcount for the Food Standards Agency (FSA).

Year Headcount

2019 1181.4

2020 1247.5

2021 1291.8

2022 1431.1

2023 1537.1

The following table shows in each of the last five years, the headcount of the National Food Crime Unit.

Year Headcount

2019 66.6

2020 70.1

2021 75.3

2022 77.3

2023 77.2

The above figures include all staff on FSA Payroll on the last day of March in each of the financial years and include casual employees and loans and secondments where FSA is paying greater than 50% of the salary but exclude Board and Committee members.