Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that the allocation process for newly qualified doctors in the Foundation Programme is accessible for applicants with disabilities and long‑term health conditions; and whether he is taking steps to review how reasonable adjustments are assessed and applied within that process.

NHS England recognises the specific challenges that some applicants face, and the UK Foundation Programme runs a process to accommodate the needs of applicants with exceptional circumstances.

The pre-allocation process allows applicants with a health condition or disability who have an absolute requirement to continue receiving specialist healthcare treatment and ongoing follow-up for the condition in a specific location to apply for a foundation school in that area. All pre-allocation requests are reviewed so that the process is as fair and transparent as possible.

All applicants for the Foundation Programme must also complete a Transfer of Information Guidance form which helps foundation schools identify any support or adjustments needed for doctors with health conditions or disabilities.

If necessary, doctors with a health condition or disability may additionally apply for a transfer to a specific foundation school once allocated, as part of the Inter-foundation School Transfer process.