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 effect of the covid-19 outbreak on (a) medical students and (b) final year medical students; and what plans he has to provide support to those students.

We have worked with Department for Education, Health Education England and the Medical Schools Council throughout the pandemic to ensure the continuity of undergraduate medical training. Exams will take place in 2021, meaning most final year medical students are on course to graduate and start work as foundation doctors in August. We will keep this under review.

The Government has also worked to ensure that students have ongoing access to mental health and wellbeing support services. Medical students have access to the wellbeing offer for all National Health Service staff, as well as to Student Space, a mental health and wellbeing platform, which has received £3 million of Office for Students’ funding. In addition, the Government has made an additional £85 million of funding available to support students across all courses facing financial hardship. Medical students can continue to access their NHS bursary funding if in an eligible year of their course and student finance as usual and should discuss any requirement for hardship funding with their medical school.