Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the Answer of 15 September 2023 to Question 198696 on Breast Cancer: Screening, what national evaluative projects have been commissioned; and what are the timelines for their delivery.

NHS England has commissioned a series of evaluative projects to improve the NHS Breast Screening Programme. These include actively following up women who have missed an appointment or not engaged with the service; looking at the reasons why women do not attend screening to address any barriers; and assessing the impact on screening uptake using different invitation methodologies with reference to factors such as age, previous screening history including attendance at first invitations and subsequent invites, and deprivation.

These projects are expected to report by April 2024.