Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has plans to improve the NHS complaints system.

The Government is working with the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman (PHSO) to improve the complaints process in the National Health Service. The PHSO’s NHS Complaints Standards provide guidance for complaints handlers, including how complaints and concerns can be responded to efficiently and effectively. Following the launch of the NHS Complaint Standards in 2021, the PHSO is currently developing and piloting supporting materials and training with a range of NHS organisations, to embed the Standards in local complaints processes. This is due for completion by the end of 2022, with the final materials deployed in the NHS in 2023.