Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what recent representations he has received on the public consultation process for moving NHS services between two locations.

We would expect providers and commissioners to ensure that any service change is in the interests of high quality patient care. During transition periods local commissioners and providers should ensure that high standards of patient care are maintained for patients affected by the changes.

NHS England has assessed the Newcastle Upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust against its standards for congenital heart disease services and concluded that it does not meet the 2019 paediatric co-location requirements or currently have a realistic plan to do so by April 2019.

NHS England has asked the Trust to give due consideration as to how this standard could be achieved.

The Trust has stated that it is committed to undertaking an option appraisal with regard to the co-location of Paediatric Heart Services with other children’s services. The full range of options is not yet determined, but the appraisal will take full consideration of any impact on patient care.

These considerations are at a very early stage and do not form part of the proposals recently set out by NHS England in its consultation on implementing Congenital Heart Disease standards.