Minister of State for Care (): I am delighted to
announce to the House today that the Government is developing a
Palliative Care and End of Life Care Modern Service Framework for
England, with a planned publication date of Spring 2026. This
will be aligned with the ambitions set out in the recently
published 10-Year Health Plan, which prioritises shifting care
out of hospitals and into community settings to ensure
personalised, compassionate support for individuals of all ages
and their families.
This government recognises that there are increasing numbers of
people living with multiple complex conditions, that we have an
increasing ageing population and that there are tens of thousands
of children and young people with life-limiting or
life-threatening conditions.
We acknowledge the significant challenges currently facing the
sector, including:
- Delays in early identification of individuals approaching the
end of life.
- Inconsistencies in commissioning practices across integrated
care boards (ICBs).
- Workforce challenges in both universal and specialist
services.
- Gaps in 24/7 palliative care provision.
- Limited uptake and integration of personalised care and
support planning, including advance care planning.
In recognition of these challenges, we are prioritising this
cohort, as referenced in NHS England's Medium Term Planning
Framework, which commits to an immediate focus on reducing
unnecessary non-elective admissions and bed days from
high-priority cohorts, including those at the end of life.
A Palliative Care and End of Life Care Modern Service Framework
will drive improvements and enable ICBs to address these
challenges through the delivery of high-quality, high-value,
personalised and equitable care.
Consequently, the Modern Service Framework will put in place a
clear and effective mechanism to deliver a fundamental
improvement to the care provided. This will enable adoption of
evidence-based interventions that are proven to make a difference
to patients and their families. Examples include earlier
identification of need, care delivered closer to home by
integrated generalist and specialist teams and strengthened
out-of-hours community health support, including dedicated
telephone advice.
We have already begun to engage with sector stakeholders on how
to improve access, quality and sustainability in palliative care
and end of life care and will continue to engage with them to
shape and deliver this vision. We want a society where every
person receives high-quality, compassionate care from diagnosis
through to the end of life, and we recognise that access to
high-quality, personalised palliative care and end of life care
can make all the difference to patients and their loved ones.
