Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the Disabled Children’s Partnership polling released January 2022, what recent progress he has made on tackling the backlog in disabled children’s health services, including the provision of (a) therapies, (b) wheelchairs, (c) hoists and (d) other equipment.

As part of COVID-19 recovery planning, we are reviewing how we can improve the provision of health services, including therapies for disabled children. We have made £2 billion available in 2021/22 and a further £8 billion from April 2022 to March 2025 to increase activity and reduce waiting times for patients, including disabled children. This funding could deliver the equivalent of approximately nine million more checks, scans and procedures and allow the National Health Service in England to deliver 30% more elective activity by 2024/25 compared to pre-pandemic levels. A further £5.9 billion of capital funding was announced in the October 2021 to support elective recovery, diagnostics, and technology.

We are supporting access to appropriate disability equipment via NHS Supply Chain, which maintains a framework contract for the supply of rehabilitation and disabled services equipment, such as paediatric wheelchairs, to the NHS and other healthcare settings.