Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government whether their proposed arrangements for a new national director of patient experience, in place of local Healthwatch, will cover adult social care services as well as NHS services.

The Government is committed to ensuring that patients and the public have a strong and effective voice in the design and improvement of health and care services. We have announced that Healthwatch England and Local Healthwatch organisations will be retained and the system strengthened so that patients' and public experiences play a greater role in improving health and social care services. The reforms will support more consistent engagement with patients and communities, helping services better understand and respond to local needs.

Local Healthwatch will retain its existing powers including to enter and view premises used by providers for the provision of services, and the Government has committed to continue funding local authorities to commission Local Healthwatch services. Through the new Patient Experience Directorate, we will ensure that the views and experiences of patients and the public directly inform national policy for health and social care, so that lived experience drives action, reform and improvement.