Gill Furniss

High and rising standards are at the heart of the government’s mission to break down barriers to opportunity and give every child the best life chances.

Following the recommendations of the Curriculum and Assessment Review published on 5 November 2025, we will revise the English curriculum to ensure that there is more emphasis on speaking, listening and drama, alongside creating a new primary oracy framework and a new combined secondary oracy, reading and writing framework to support its implementation.

The government has also committed £27.7 million this financial year to support and drive high and rising standards in reading. This includes supporting the teaching of phonics, early language and reading for pleasure via the English Hubs programme.

We will also build secondary schools' capacity to support students with reading needs by providing new reading training from January 2026.

Additionally, on 7 July 2025, my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education announced that 2026 will be the National Year of Reading. The National Year of Reading is a UK-wide campaign to address the steep decline in reading enjoyment amongst children, young people and adults. More information is available at www.goallin.org.uk.

The Government acknowledges the importance of ensuring healthcare professionals are adequately trained and educated on women’s health conditions, including endometriosis, and we have taken action to address this.

NHS England encourages adherence to guidance publications by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE). However, professionals and practitioners are expected to exercise their judgement when taking NICE guidelines into account, alongside the individual needs, preferences, and values of their patients or the people using their service. It is not mandatory to apply the recommendations, and the guideline does not override the responsibility to make decisions appropriate to the circumstances of the individual, in consultation with them and their families and carers or guardian.

NHS England is currently developing a pelvic pain pathway for systems which will provide a framework for managing pelvic pain and endometriosis across the healthcare system. This will be aligned with NICE guidance and will enable women to get care either in primary care, neighbourhood services, or specialist secondary care services in line with their needs.

The Skills for Health Multi-professional Capabilities framework has a focus on developing basic, intermediate, and advanced skills so that all healthcare professionals are able to manage pain and, where the ceiling of skills are reached, have an easy referral pathway to achieving good outcomes.

NHS England is working with regions to encourage and support implementation of these pathways and a neighbourhood approach to care, which will help to support early recognition and diagnosis, reducing waiting times for women for conditions including endometriosis.

From October 2026, all providers, supported by integrated care boards, are expected to ensure that all appropriate requests and referrals flow through a Single Point of Access (SPoA) model, to support patients to receive rapid specialist assessment and a clear next step. By embedding timely specialist clinical review at the start of the pathway, including for non-urgent gynaecology referrals, the model improves access to the right clinic, diagnostic service, or care setting, the first time.

Patients with suspected or diagnosed endometriosis will benefit from SPoA for gynaecology referrals, alongside wider work through the Renewed Women’s Health Strategy which commits to speeding up diagnosis and access to treatment for conditions including endometriosis.

Clinical pathways for heavy periods and pelvic pain, including endometriosis, will be redesigned to reduce repeat appointments, unnecessary referrals, and long waits. This will support systems to meet local need and enable more appropriate care to be delivered in community settings.

This Government is committed to improving cancer screening services in line with the National Cancer Plan and as part of the 10-Year Health Plan’s shift from treatment to prevention.

Neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1) affects individuals differently. An individual’s risk of breast cancer is based on a number of factors. These factors may vary throughout a lifetime which is why individuals are advised to seek advice from their health professionals.

Most, but not all, individuals with NF1 would be considered at moderate risk of breast cancer, which would mean they could be referred to local cancer surveillance programme commissioned via integrated care boards.

National Institute of Health and Care Excellence guidance does not address NF1 specifically but does state that people with certain genetic conditions should be referred through to a geneticist to consider their risk and may qualify for annual breast screening between 40 and 50 years of age.

The NHS website provides information for people living with NF1, available at the following link:

https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/neurofibromatosis-type-1/

The review of the general practice (GP) funding formula, the Carr-Hill formula, is being conducted by the National Institute for Health and Care Research. The purpose of the review is to ensure that funding for GPs is distributed equitably and is targeted towards areas that need it most.

The review has commenced and will draw on a range of evidence and advice from experts. Implementation of any new funding approach will be subject to ministerial decision, in the context of the available funding and our commitment to substantively reform the General Medical Services Contract within this Parliament.

Integrated care boards are responsible for commissioning services to meet the health needs of their local population, which includes responsibility for ensuring that there is adequate provision of translation services.

The Department of Health and Social Care is working closely with the Department for Education and NHS England to improve access to community health services, including speech and language therapy, for children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities.

In addition to the undergraduate degree route, speech and language therapists can now also train via a degree apprenticeship. This route is going into its fourth year of delivery and offers an alternative pathway to the traditional degree route into a successful career as a speech and language therapist.

In partnership with NHS England, the Department for Education has extended the Early Language and Support for Every Child programme, trialling new ways of working to better identify and support children with Speech, Language and Communication Needs in early years settings and primary schools.

At the Spending Review, we confirmed that we will deliver on our commitment to recruit an additional 8,500 mental health workers by the end of this Parliament, roll out mental health support teams to cover all schools in England by 2029/30 and expand NHS Talking Therapies and Individual Placement and Support schemes.

We have also already started piloting Neighbourhood Mental Health Centres. These pilots aim to provide open access care for anyone with a severe mental illness 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Our aim is to have one Neighbourhood Health Centre in each community that brings together National Health Service, local authority and voluntary sector services in one building to help create a holistic offer that meets the needs of local populations including children with lifelong speech and language difficulties.

The following table shows the count of elective hospital admissions where there was a primary diagnosis of 'aortic stenosis', by patient gender, as well as the median duration from the receipt of referral by the hospital to admission for 2022/23 to 2024/25:

Source: Hospital Episode Statistics, NHS England.

No specific assessment has been made of the potential impact of delayed access to specialist heart valve disease (HVD) treatment on avoidable unscheduled hospitalisations, deaths on waiting lists, or other patient outcomes.

Cutting waiting times, including for cardiology services, is a key priority for the Government. The cardiology waiting list decreased from 412,164 in September 2024 to 393,400 in September 2025, although this data includes estimates for missing data.

Cardiology is a priority specialty for significant transformation, as outlined in the Elective Reform Plan. The ambition is, where possible and clinically appropriate, to increase specialist care closer to home, and outside of hospitals so that hospital capacity is freed up, enabling patients' timely access to care, as well as improving outcomes.

NHS England has committed to optimising pathways of care for patients with HVD, including earlier detection and improved treatment pathways. To achieve this, the NHS England Cardiac Programme has established an expert advisory group and carried out work including, in 2024/25, providing targeted funding for pathway improvement projects. These included projects that focussed on improving referral processes and local diagnostic pathway provision, as well as fast-tracking patients on valve disease pathways.

To accelerate progress towards the Government’s ambition to reduce premature deaths from heart disease and stroke by 25% within a decade, we will publish a new cardiovascular disease modern service framework in 2026.

Integrated care boards are responsible for commissioning services to meet the needs of their local population, which includes responsibility for ensuring that there is adequate provision of British Sign Language (BSL) interpreters to support patients in the community.

All National Health Service organisations and publicly funded social care providers are expected to meet the Accessible Information Standard (AIS), which details the approach to supporting the information and communication support needs of people with a disability, impairment or sensory loss, including people using BSL.

On 30 June 2025, a revised AIS was published. NHS England is working to support implementation of the AIS with awareness raising, communication and engagement, and a review of the current e-learning modules on the AIS. The intention is to ensure that staff and organisations in the NHS are aware of the AIS and the importance of meeting the information and communication needs of disabled people using these services.

I also recently attended and spoke at a parliamentary event highlighting the BSL Advisory Board health and social care report and we will be considering its findings.

The Government has set out a commitment to make the NHS App British Sign Language accessible in the 10-Year Health Plan, which covers the period to 2035.

Under the Care Act 2014, everyone whose needs are met by the local authority (LA) must receive a personal budget as part of the care and support plan. The budget sets out how much of the cost of care will be met by the LA and how much will be met by the adult.

Individual Service Funds (ISFs) are one of the ways in which the personal budget can be deployed. It allows for a third-party provider to hold and manage the budget on behalf of the individual.

Guidance on ISFs is set out in the Care and Support Statutory (CASS) Guidance, issued under the Care Act 2014. The CASS guidance sets out that LAs should offer ISFs where possible and provide clear information on how they work. Where an ISF arrangement is not available locally, the LA should explore arrangements to develop this offer and should be receptive to requests to create arrangements with specified providers.

In addition, and supported by the Department, Think Local Act Personal has produced guidance for LAs on ISFs, which can be found on their website, at the following link:

https://thinklocalactpersonal.org.uk/resources/individual-service-funds-isfs-and-contracting-for-flexible-support/

The Care Quality Commission is assessing how well LAs in England are delivering adult social care by looking at how they are performing against their duties under Part 1 of the Care Act 2014. The assessments identify LAs strengths and areas for improvement, facilitating the sharing of good practice and helping us to target support where it is most needed.

The Department has not had discussions with LAs specifically on the effectiveness of the implementation of ISFs under the Care Act 2014.

The Department has not made any specific assessment of the impact of delayed heart valve treatment on avoidable unscheduled hospitalisations, deaths on the waiting lists, and other patient outcomes.

It is unacceptable that so many patients have been let down for too long whilst they wait for the care they need. We have wasted no time in getting to work cutting National Health Service waiting lists and ensuring people have the best possible experience during their care. We promised change, and we’ve delivered early with a reduction in the list of over 206,000 since the Government came into office. Specifically, the waiting list for cardiology services has reduced by over 25,000 in that time.

Between July 2024 and June 2025, we delivered 5.2 million additional appointments compared to the previous year, more than double our pledge of two million. This marks a vital first step to delivering on the commitment that 92% of patients will wait no longer than 18 weeks from referral to consultant-led treatment by March 2029.

In line with the goals of the 10-Year Health Plan, NHS England has already undertaken measures to improve the early detection of heart valve disease (HVD). These include:

• commissioning the Primary Care Cardiovascular Society to develop a new referral form to support the investigation of HVD; and
• establishing an Expert Advisory Group on HVD with the aim of ensuring excellence in care whilst exploring ways to improve HVD management nationwide.

In 2025, NHS England’s Getting It Right First Time programme published new and revised cardiology pathways to support evidence-based, efficient, and consistent care across primary and secondary settings, including for aortic stenosis for patients with severe symptomatic heart valve disease.

The 10-Year Health Plan sets out the three big shifts the National Health Service needs to be fit for the future: from hospital to community, from analogue to digital, and from sickness to prevention. All three shifts are relevant to improving outcomes for those experiencing heart valve disease.

More tests and scans delivered in the community, better joint working between services, and greater use of apps and wearable technology will all help people manage their conditions closer to home and help to reduce hospital admissions.

In line with the goals of the 10-Year Health Plan, NHS England has already undertaken measures to improve earlier detection of heart valve disease (HVD). It is commissioning the Primary Care Cardiovascular Society to develop a new referral form to support the investigation of HVD. The referral form is to guide primary healthcare teams to confidently refer patients with suspected, or known, valve disease for specialist assessment and/or echocardiography, where appropriate.

NHS England is also establishing an Expert Advisory Group on HVD which brings together experts and key stakeholders from across the United Kingdom, with the aim of ensuring excellence in care whilst exploring ways to improve heart valve disease management nationwide. Additionally, NHS England is undertaking a review of health inequalities for all specialised cardiac services which will include aortic stenosis, a type of HVD. This will specifically consider the presentation of males versus females with aortic stenosis where research shows that women are likely to present with symptoms at an older age. It is also working with providers to implement a single point of access pathway for severe aortic stenosis.

Continuous improvements have been made in the heart valve disease (HVD) pathway for service users, but there remains unwarranted variation and inequalities in terms of care for patients with HVD for example in access to surgery for aortic stenosis, a form of HVD; and late presentation which increases the risk of surgery and limits recovery after surgery.

NHS England produced an e-learning for healthcare on heart failure and heart valve disease in early 2023. This package of education supports clinicians across primary care and community settings to better recognise the symptoms, diagnose, manage, and support patients with heart failure and heart valve disease, including palliative and end of life care. In doing so, clinicians are supported to identify and manage patients in primary care where appropriate, to reduce avoidable admissions to hospital.

In 2024 NHS England commissioned the Primary Care Cardiovascular Society to develop a new referral form to support the investigation of heart valve disease. The referral form is to guide primary healthcare teams to confidently refer patients with suspected, or known, valve disease for specialist assessment and/or echocardiography, where appropriate. The resource includes:

- a comprehensive checklist to support patient referral for further assessment;

- important signs and symptoms; and

- referral pathways for suspected heart valve disease.

The Department is committed to funding health and care research via the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) across England, and to ensuring that the research we support is inclusive and representative of the populations we serve.  We know that cancer survival rates are generally lower in people living in more deprived areas.

In 2024, the NIHR made equity, diversity, and inclusion a condition of funding for all domestic research awards. This means applicants must demonstrate how their research will contribute towards the NIHR’s mission to reduce health and care inequalities, with a focus on participant inclusion from diverse populations of the United Kingdom.

NIHR research infrastructure has national coverage across the whole of England. Our infrastructure schemes aim to build research capacity and capability across the country across all geographies and settings. In line with prior commitments, the Department has increased funding for research infrastructure schemes delivering cancer research outside the Greater South East, including Biomedical Research Centres, Clinical Research Facilities, and HealthTech Research Centres.

Through the NIHR Research Delivery Network (RDN), the NIHR supports 100% of National Health Service trusts in England to deliver research, operating across 12 regions throughout the country. From 2026/27, the RDN will adopt a new national funding model for NHS support costs and research delivery. This will be a consistent, nationally agreed funding distribution model across all regions of England and will reduce regional variations of health research delivery investment, and better enable clinical trial opportunities across all areas, including underserved areas and settings.

The NIHR also provides an online service called Be Part of Research which promotes participation in health and social care research by allowing users to search for relevant studies and register their interest. This makes it easier for people to find and take part in health and care research that is relevant to them.

The Department and NHS England are taking a number of steps to support systems to deliver cost-effective, lifesaving prehabilitation and rehabilitation services. Local planning for prehabilitation and rehabilitation services is devolved to National Health Service trusts and Cancer Alliances in their locality.

NHS England has highlighted the positive impact of efficient prehabilitation and rehabilitation on cancer outcomes and the potential for them to lead to cost savings. The PRosPer Cancer Prehabilitation and Rehabilitation learning programme, launched in partnership between NHS England and Macmillan Cancer support, aims to support allied health professionals and the wider healthcare workforce in developing their skills in providing personalised care, prehabilitation, and rehabilitation in the cancer pathway.

The forthcoming National Cancer Plan will look at how we can improve patient outcomes and will cover the entirety of the cancer pathway, from referral and diagnosis to treatment and ongoing care, including prehabilitation and rehabilitation services where appropriate.

As set out in our 10-Year Health Plan for England, we are committed to ensuring all hospitals integrate ‘opt-out’ smoking cessation interventions into routine care. As part of the NHS Long Term Plan, NHS England has prioritised and put new funding out to integrated care boards (ICBs), which includes Humber and Yorkshire ICB, South Yorkshire ICB and West Yorkshire ICB, for the rollout of tobacco dependence services in hospital settings, including acute and mental health inpatient settings and maternity services. Future funding decisions are subject to the Spending Review process.

Early diagnosis is a key focus of the National Cancer Plan, which will build on the shifts in care set out in the 10-Year Health Plan, to diagnose cancers earlier. Through the 10-Year Health Plan, we will make it easier for people to access cancer screening, diagnostics, and treatment in patients’ local areas, backed by the latest technology to drive up this country’s cancer survival rates. We will increase participation in screening programmes by taking innovative approaches like self-sampling for cervical screening and digital booking.

The National Cancer Plan, to be published later this year, will include further details on how we will speed up diagnosis, as well as how we will prioritise screening programmes and improve participation, including participation from people in deprived areas.

The Government recognises the importance of women and girls being able to access adequate information and care for menstrual health conditions and reproductive health.

The women’s health area on the National Health Service website brings together over 100 health topics including pages on heavy periods, endometriosis, adenomyosis, and contraception. This provides women with information on hormonal and non-hormonal treatment options for menstrual health conditions, and information on the different types of hormonal and non-hormonal contraception methods, including where to get them and how well they work at preventing pregnancy.

NHS England has also developed a shared decision tool to help women and general practitioners make decisions about the best treatments for heavy menstrual bleeding. This is available at the following link:

https://www.england.nhs.uk/publication/decision-support-tool-making-a-decision-about-managing-heavy-periods/

Clinical guidelines also support healthcare professionals to provide evidence-based care. The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence has published guidelines on a range of women’s health topics, including heavy menstrual bleeding, endometriosis, and contraception, and has also published a guideline on shared decision making.

The Department funds health and care research primarily through the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR). The NIHR has made research inclusion a condition of its funding. Applicants to domestic research programmes are required to demonstrate how inclusion is being built into all stages of the research lifecycle, with significant emphasis on how participant selection is considered. Before the end of March 2026, this will also be required for global health research and infrastructure awards.

The NIHR is developing a sex and gender policy to be implemented subsequently in 2025, to ensure that NIHR research accounts for sex and gender across every stage of the research cycle, allowing for a greater understanding of how men and women might be impacted differently by the same health condition, treatment, or intervention.

The Department is also developing a new research and development innovation strategy to accelerate the development of equitable, transformational medical technology solutions. Part of the aims of this work are to eliminate sex bias in medical technology research and development, ensuring that innovations are effective and accessible for all.