Asked by: Tom Hayes (Labour - Bournemouth East)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what proportion of newly employed midwives secured employment with their preferred NHS trust since 1 January 2023.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department does not hold the information requested.
Asked by: Tom Hayes (Labour - Bournemouth East)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate he has made of the employment rate amongst midwifery graduates since 1 January 2023.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department does not hold the information requested.
Asked by: Tom Hayes (Labour - Bournemouth East)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate he has made of levels of long-term sickness amongst NHS maternity service staff.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
NHS England publishes monthly data on sickness absence rates for staff working in the National Health Service. This is available at the following link:
https://digital.nhs.uk/data-and-information/publications/statistical/nhs-sickness-absence-rates
However, data on the duration of the absence is not available.
As set out in the 10-Year Health Plan, Staff Treatment Hubs will be rolled out to ensure staff have access to high quality support for occupational health. This will include support for mental health and back conditions which are the main drivers of sickness absence in the NHS.
The commitment to Staff Treatment Hubs draws on various evidence sources including the NHS England internal Staff Treatment Access Review which demonstrated the clear productivity and economic argument for investing in the health of our NHS staff, particularly focusing on mental health and musculoskeletal treatment services.
We will also work with the Social Partnership Forum to introduce a new set of staff standards for modern employment, covering issues such as access to healthy meals, support to work healthily and flexibly, and tackling violence, racism, and sexual harassment in the workplace.
Asked by: Tom Hayes (Labour - Bournemouth East)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate he has made of levels of long-term sickness amongst NHS staff.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
NHS England publishes monthly data on sickness absence rates for staff working in the National Health Service. This is available at the following link:
https://digital.nhs.uk/data-and-information/publications/statistical/nhs-sickness-absence-rates
However, data on the duration of the absence is not available.
As set out in the 10-Year Health Plan, Staff Treatment Hubs will be rolled out to ensure staff have access to high quality support for occupational health. This will include support for mental health and back conditions which are the main drivers of sickness absence in the NHS.
The commitment to Staff Treatment Hubs draws on various evidence sources including the NHS England internal Staff Treatment Access Review which demonstrated the clear productivity and economic argument for investing in the health of our NHS staff, particularly focusing on mental health and musculoskeletal treatment services.
We will also work with the Social Partnership Forum to introduce a new set of staff standards for modern employment, covering issues such as access to healthy meals, support to work healthily and flexibly, and tackling violence, racism, and sexual harassment in the workplace.
Asked by: Tom Hayes (Labour - Bournemouth East)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he ia taking to reduce staff sickness absences amongst NHS staff.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
NHS England publishes monthly data on sickness absence rates for staff working in the National Health Service. This is available at the following link:
https://digital.nhs.uk/data-and-information/publications/statistical/nhs-sickness-absence-rates
However, data on the duration of the absence is not available.
As set out in the 10-Year Health Plan, Staff Treatment Hubs will be rolled out to ensure staff have access to high quality support for occupational health. This will include support for mental health and back conditions which are the main drivers of sickness absence in the NHS.
The commitment to Staff Treatment Hubs draws on various evidence sources including the NHS England internal Staff Treatment Access Review which demonstrated the clear productivity and economic argument for investing in the health of our NHS staff, particularly focusing on mental health and musculoskeletal treatment services.
We will also work with the Social Partnership Forum to introduce a new set of staff standards for modern employment, covering issues such as access to healthy meals, support to work healthily and flexibly, and tackling violence, racism, and sexual harassment in the workplace.
Asked by: Tom Hayes (Labour - Bournemouth East)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what proportion of midwifery graduates were employed as midwives within 12 months of graduation in the last three years.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department does not hold the information requested.
Asked by: Tom Hayes (Labour - Bournemouth East)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what proportion of newly employed midwives found employment within 20 miles of their home address since 2023.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department does not hold the information requested.
Asked by: Tom Hayes (Labour - Bournemouth East)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the international labour supply of midwives on the (a) training and (b) employment of British midwives.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is committed to developing homegrown talent and giving opportunities to more people across the country to join our NHS. Later this year, we will publish a 10 Year Workforce Plan which will outline strategies for improving retention, productivity, training, and reducing attrition—enhancing conditions for all staff, while gradually reducing reliance on international recruitment, without diminishing the value of their contributions.
Asked by: Tom Hayes (Labour - Bournemouth East)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of NHS cost recovery.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
No formal assessment has been made. However, we continue to work with NHS England to ensure that the system works as effectively and fairly as possible.
Asked by: Tom Hayes (Labour - Bournemouth East)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to help increase opportunities for midwifery graduates to gain employment in the NHS.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
On 11 August 2025, the Government announced the Graduate Guarantee for nurses and midwives. The guarantee will ensure that there are enough positions for every newly qualified midwife in England. The package of measures will unlock thousands of jobs, ensuring thousands of new posts are easier to access by removing barriers for National Health Service trusts, creating opportunities for graduates and enabling a seamless transition from training to employment.
Vacant maternity support worker posts will be temporarily converted to Band 5 midwifery roles, backed by £8 million to create new opportunities specifically for newly qualified midwives and to further ease the recruitment strain.
These new measures aim to tackle graduates’ concerns about job availability and ensure the NHS has the right staff to provide the best possible care to patients everywhere.