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 adequacy of health-related funding for specialist sexual violence support services in Surrey Heath constituency.

Sexual assault referral centres (SARCs) provide crisis care, and medical and forensic assessment for people who have experienced sexual assault. NHS England’s funding for sexual assault and abuse services has increased year on year, with £57.632 million provided nationally in 2024/25. A free at the point of use, confidential SARC is available in Surrey 24/7, 365 days a year.

As set out in the Violence Against Women and Girls Strategy, published in December 2025, the Department will:

• roll out, with funding, a domestic abuse and sexual violence referral service across integrated care boards (ICBs) by 2029, starting with up to ten ICBs in 2026, and will include a specialist support worker for every general practice (GP) to draw on and training for GP staff to spot the signs of violence and abuse;
• invest a further £5 million each year for the next three years to support victims and survivors of domestic abuse and sexual violence; and
• provide up to £50 million to roll out specialist services for child sexual abuse victims to each NHS region in England.