Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an assessment of the adequacy of the provision of maternity services to asylum seekers; and if he will take steps to help ensure that asylum seekers understand how to access emergency maternity health care.

The Home Office manages all asylum processes, which includes supporting people to access the services they need. Women seeking asylum are asked at several stages of their asylum application whether they may be pregnant by Home Office case workers, who will identify the necessary support and relevant accommodation to meet their needs. Pregnant women seeking asylum are generally accommodated in community settings and, as such, have access to the same local health and care services as other resident women.

Under the umbrella of the National Asylum Seekers’ Health Oversight Group, NHS England and the Home Office co-chairs a working group focused on maternal health and aimed at improving the access, experience, and outcomes of women seeking asylum during pregnancy and after birth. For example, the group has produced the Escalation Route Agreement for healthcare professionals to communicate any concerns directly to Home Office case workers in relation to accommodation moves in the later stages of pregnancy or the perinatal period.