Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer to Question 35076, what measures will be taken at the national level this winter to improve discharge, and what support will be made available to support adult social care.

The NHS England Model Discharge Pathway, published in July, sets out good practice to support timely, safe discharge from hospital and reduce unwarranted variation in discharge processes across wards and organisations. Areas experiencing the most significant challenges with discharge delays and urgent and emergency care performance are receiving targeted support to drive improvements.

NHS England’s winter planning expectations require systems to have tested, board-assured plans, including escalation arrangements and implementation of the Model Discharge Pathway. A national Winter Cell will support oversight, coordination and intervention where required.

We are strengthening join-up between health and social care services, by developing neighbourhood health services. Through the Better Care Fund, integrated care boards and local authorities are required to pool over £9 billion in 2026/27 to join up health and social care services, including agreeing local goals to prevent avoidable hospital admissions and reduce delayed discharges.