Asked by: Antoinette Sandbach (Liberal Democrat - Eddisbury)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, by what date (a) clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) are required to submit and (b) NHS England is required to approve sustainability and transformation plans for maternity services; and when he expects the NHS to publish its annual rating on the provision of CCGs maternity services.
Answered by Philip Dunne
Sustainability and Transformation Plans (STPs) are being developed by health and social care organisations located across local areas referred to as ‘footprints’. Whilst clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) are key stakeholders in the footprints, STPs represent the combined view of the organisations in the area also including National Health Service providers and local government.
The March STP guidance to footprints stressed the importance of responding to 10 key priority areas which included maternity. On the 30 June there was a checkpoint for STPs. Footprints are at different starting points, and so the degree of detail that has been provided in the 30 June STP checkpoint varies. At present, managerial conversations regarding the submission are being held between the national bodies and representatives from each footprint. Footprints will be expected to submit a final plan in October. Final STPs and operational plans will be expected to set out how Mandate priorities will be delivered, including improvement to maternity services, before being agreed.
The CCG Improvement and Assessment Framework will rate CCGs on the provision of maternity services annually. The first results of the first assessment will be published soon.
Asked by: Antoinette Sandbach (Liberal Democrat - Eddisbury)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of differences between bereavement support services for families who have suffered a stillbirth or neonatal death commissioned by clinical commissioning groups and such services provided by hospital trusts; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Ben Gummer
A report in 2015 on Term, singleton, normally-formed, antepartum stillbirth from Mothers and Babies: Reducing Risk through Audits and Confidential Enquiries across the UK found that 60% of parents currently receive a good standard of bereavement care but this is not the case for everyone and we are continuing to consider the actions that should be taken to improve bereavement care across England.
NHS England has established a Maternity Transformation Programme Board, this will bring key partners together to oversee the implementation of a broad range of policies to deliver significant improvements to maternity care in England, including implementation of the recommendations of Better Births, Improving outcomes of maternity services in England (2016). The Transformation Programme includes work on supporting local transformation of maternity services, promoting best practice for safer care, increasing choice and reforming the payment system.
In Delivering the Forward View: NHS planning guidance 2016/17-2020/21 localities have been asked to produce “Sustainability and Transformation Plans” to show how local services should transform and ensure they are sustainable over the next five years. As part of this, local health economies have been asked to plan how they will transform their maternity services in line with the vision outlined in Better Births, Improving outcomes of maternity services in England. NHS England will be reviewing how well commissioners are planning for delivery of this vision in signing-off plans; and how well those plans are being put into action and on an ongoing basis through its Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) Assessment Framework, and annual Ofsted-style rating of each CCG on its commissioning of maternity services.
Asked by: Antoinette Sandbach (Liberal Democrat - Eddisbury)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will review the (a) commissioning framework and (b) tariff payment for bereavement care for families who have suffered a stillbirth or neonatal death.
Answered by Ben Gummer
A report in 2015 on Term, singleton, normally-formed, antepartum stillbirth from Mothers and Babies: Reducing Risk through Audits and Confidential Enquiries across the UK found that 60% of parents currently receive a good standard of bereavement care but this is not the case for everyone and we are continuing to consider the actions that should be taken to improve bereavement care across England.
NHS England has established a Maternity Transformation Programme Board, this will bring key partners together to oversee the implementation of a broad range of policies to deliver significant improvements to maternity care in England, including implementation of the recommendations of Better Births, Improving outcomes of maternity services in England (2016). The Transformation Programme includes work on supporting local transformation of maternity services, promoting best practice for safer care, increasing choice and reforming the payment system.
In Delivering the Forward View: NHS planning guidance 2016/17-2020/21 localities have been asked to produce “Sustainability and Transformation Plans” to show how local services should transform and ensure they are sustainable over the next five years. As part of this, local health economies have been asked to plan how they will transform their maternity services in line with the vision outlined in Better Births, Improving outcomes of maternity services in England. NHS England will be reviewing how well commissioners are planning for delivery of this vision in signing-off plans; and how well those plans are being put into action and on an ongoing basis through its Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) Assessment Framework, and annual Ofsted-style rating of each CCG on its commissioning of maternity services.