§ Mr. BurstowTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has to produce national minimum standards of care for residential services provided by the NHS. [141527]
§ Dr. LadymanNational minimum standards have been developed for a range of establishments and agencies regulated under the Care Standards Act. The National Care Standards Commission must take the standards into account when making any decision about whether an establishment or agency conforms to the relevant statutory regulations. The standards apply irrespective of who provides the service, thus care homes run by the national health service are subject to the standards.
There are no plans to produce national minimum standards for NHS hospital accommodation although residential services provided in such establishments would come within the Commission for Health Improvement's rolling review.