Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent steps his Department has taken to improve rates of early dementia diagnosis.

The average waiting time for dementia assessment waits varies between local memory clinics, local services and, at times, individual needs. Current performance data denotes a wait between six and nine weeks for those with a multidisciplinary team diagnostic formulation of dementia to 18 weeks and over in areas with higher demand or workforce pressure.

We remain committed to recovering the dementia diagnosis rate to the national ambition of 66.7%. 66.3% of patients aged 65 years or over who are estimated to have dementia had a recorded diagnosis of dementia on 31 March 2026. This is an increase from 66.1% on 28 February 2026. The dementia diagnostic diagnosis rate in Essex is currently at 69.20%.

To support recovery of the dementia diagnosis rates and implementation of the Dementia Care Pathway, we have developed a memory service dashboard for management information purposes. The aim is to support commissioners and providers with appropriate data and enable targeted support where needed.

We will deliver the first ever Modern Service Framework for Frailty and Dementia to deliver rapid and significant improvements in quality of care and productivity. This will be informed by phase one of the independent commission into adult social care, which is expected this year.

The framework will seek to reduce unwarranted variation and narrow inequality for those living with dementia, and it will set national standards for dementia care and redirect National Health Service priorities to provide the best possible care and support. As part of this exercise, we will consider what interventions should be supported to improve diagnosis waiting times, which we know are too long in many areas. We are considering all options to help reduce variation, including reviewing metrics and targets.