Hospitals: Standards
The question
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of aging hospital infrastructure on clinical outcomes.
Answered by Karin Smyth
The safety of National Health Service staff and patients is of vital importance to the Government. That is why repairing and rebuilding our hospital estate is a key part of our ambition to create an NHS that is fit for the future through our 10-Year Health Plan.
In July 2024, my Rt Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care commissioned Lord Darzi to conduct an independent and immediate investigation of the NHS. This report provided the Department with an expert of understanding of the current performance of the NHS across England and the challenges facing the healthcare system. As highlighted in Lord Darzi’s independent review of the NHS in England, demand is growing for new and improved health infrastructure that addresses the deteriorating condition of the NHS estate. The Darzi Review highlighted the impact of aging infrastructure on clinical activity, finding that aging infrastructure affected services at 13 hospitals a day in 2022/23.
As part of the management of their estate, NHS trusts regularly assess the physical condition of their estate. The Estates Related Information Collection survey collects data from trusts on the quality of their estate annually, including estates related incidents. The latest data is available at the following link:
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