Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to ensure that people with (a) learning disabilities and (b) autism are included in the development of mandatory disability and equality training for NHS staff.

We will shortly consult on proposals for mandatory learning disability and autism training to ensure that staff working in health and social care understand the needs of people with learning disabilities and autism and have the skills to provide them with the most effective care and support.

The consultation will consider the role of people with a learning disability or autism in the development and deployment of training as they can bring a unique and valuable perspective as users of health and care services. It will also consider the content of training and the knowledge and skills which are fundamental to providing effective support to people with learning disabilities or autism.