Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions he has had with ICBs on determining funding required to meet palliative care needs.

Integrated care boards (ICBs) are responsible for commissioning palliative care and end-of-life care services to meet the reasonable needs of their local populations, including hospice provision. To support ICBs in this duty, NHS England has published statutory guidance and service specifications.

As set out in NHS England’s Strategic Commissioning Framework and Medium Term Planning Guidance, both published last year, ICBs are expected to understand current and projected total service utilisation and the associated costs for people at the end of life, create an overall plan to more effectively manage the needs of these high-priority cohorts, and significantly reduce avoidable unplanned admissions.

Through the development of the Palliative Care and End of Life Care Modern Service Framework (MSF), the Department and NHS England are working with the sector to support ICBs to commission more strategically, including considering future contracting and commissioning arrangements. This shift aims to move away from grant-based and historic block contract models towards a more sustainable approach that ensures funding aligns with the needs identified by ICBs.