Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of providing targeted support for (a) infant and (b) parental mental health while a family is experiencing homelessness.

As part of NHS England’s Maternity and Neonatal Three-Year Delivery Plan, NHS England is working to rollout Maternal Mental Health Services for women experiencing mental health difficulties related to loss or trauma in the maternity or neonatal context. This may include those who experience post-traumatic stress disorder following birth trauma, perinatal loss, or severe fear of childbirth, known as tokophobia.

As of February 2024, 39 Maternal Mental Health Services have been established, which provide psychological therapy for women experiencing mental health difficulties related to their maternity experience. Every integrated care system area will soon have these services in place.

In December 2023, NHS England published new guidance for general practice (GPs) on the postnatal appointment women should be offered six to eight weeks after giving birth. This provides an important opportunity for GPs to listen to women in a discrete, supportive environment.

We also continue to engage with a number of other departments and representative groups to discuss what can be done to mitigate the effect of housing insecurity and homelessness on mental health and wellbeing.