Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the accessibility of auditory verbal therapy for deaf children in the NHS.

No assessment has been made. In 2019 NHS England, with input from the National Deaf Children’s Society, produced a guide for commissioners and health and local authority providers who support children and young people with hearing loss. The guide provides practical advice to organisations, commissioners and providers on how they can ensure children with hearing loss receive the support they need throughout the system, so that they can lead successful, fulfilling and independent lives. The guide is available at the following link:

https://www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/what-works-chswg-guide.pdf