Hospital Beds: Social Services
The question
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the impact of social care delays, the availability of supported housing, the provision of home care packages, and access to mental health beds and community care packages on patient flow and delayed discharges at the University Hospitals Sussex NHS Foundation Trust, and what steps he is taking to address any impacts identified.
Answered by Karin Smyth
No assessment has been made on the impact of social care on discharge delays as we do not hold the data. Data on reasons for discharge delays are published by NHS England and is available at the following link:
The following table shows the weekly snapshot average of patients with a length of stay of seven or more days who no longer meet the criteria to reside but who were not discharged for specific codes at the University Hospitals Sussex NHS Foundation Trust in May 2026:
Category | Weekly average number of patients | Proportion of delays |
Capacity – Housing provision not yet available | 0 | 0.0% |
Interface process – Other home-based social care service arrangements still underway | 8 | 1.9% |
Capacity – Other home-based social care service not yet available | 5 | 1.2% |
Capacity – Mental health admitted patient care not yet available | 4 | 1.0% |
Through the Government's new £39 billion Social and Affordable Homes Programme, from 2026/27 to 2035/36, we will be delivering a new supply of supported housing in greater numbers, and across a diverse range of cohorts, and housing types. This will support more people to build and sustain their independence and reduce care and support needs over the long term.
We are improving discharge delays through the £9 billion Better Care Fund, which supports joint working between the National Health Service and local authorities. It invests in services such as intermediate care, rehabilitation, and reablement. Local areas review the balance of home‑based and bed‑based intermediate care, the design and intensity of intermediate care packages, and commissioning arrangements.
The Medium Term Planning Framework asks integrated care boards to deliver real productivity gains by 2028/29, including shorter average stays in adult acute mental health beds.
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