Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 7 December 2023 to Question 4738 on Health Services: Disability, what steps her Department is taking to ensure the updated Accessible Information Standard is published as soon as possible.

NHS England is responsible for the review of the Accessible Information Standard (AIS) and its publication and remains committed to publishing the updated AIS as soon as possible. NHS England is working to both progress the documentation through the publication approval process as well as ensuring that, when published, the AIS and supporting documentation are available in accessible formats.

The Department is working closely with NHS England to ensure joint implementation of the updated AIS and receives periodic updates on progress. Following extensive engagement, with a specific focus on those with lived experience and the voluntary sector organisations that support them, NHS England has completed the review of the AIS and its associated documents. The review considered the effectiveness of the current AIS, how the standard is implemented and enforced in practice, and identified recommendations for improvement.