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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Annette Brooke on 2014-05-07.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps his Department is taking to improve access to social care assessments for people with ME or chronic fatigue syndrome.

Norman Lamb

The Care Bill will require local authorities to provide information and advice on how to access care and support in their area including assessments.

The Bill will place local authorities under a duty to assess any adult who appears to have needs for care and support, whatever their level of need. The assessment will look at the person’s needs and outcomes they want to achieve, and the person must be involved throughout the process. Authorities will have to ensure that anyone who is undertaking an assessment is appropriately trained to do so, and that where the assessor is not experienced in the condition of the person they are assessing, they must consult someone who is.

These measures will ensure that the person needing care has an effective assessment carried out by an appropriately trained assessor.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Annette Brooke on 2014-05-07.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that specialist training on (a) ME or chronic fatigue syndrome and (b) other fluctuating conditions is given to healthcare professionals assessing claimants for the personal independence payment.

Mike Penning

The Department requires the health professionals carrying out Personal Independence Payment assessments to have a broad and thorough training in disability analysis, as well as training in specific conditions, including fluctuating conditions.Both organisations providing the assessment have to conform to a rigorous set of quality and recruitment standards which are closely monitored by the Department for Work and Pensions.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Annette Brooke on 2014-05-07.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what progress he has made towards achieving his Department’s aim of processing 97 per cent of assessments for personal independence payments within 30 days.

Mike Penning

We are working closely with the providers to ensure that they are taking all necessary steps to improve performance, speed up the process and ensure claimants receive a satisfactory experience.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Annette Brooke on 2014-05-07.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that people with ME or chronic fatigue syndrome and their healthcare professionals are (a) helped to access appropriate support and (b) given the correct out of work support.

Mike Penning

We do not target our employment programmes exclusively at individuals with particular conditions such as M.E. Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. The Department’s programmes, including its specialist disability employment programmes, aim to identify and meet the needs of the individual, including those with M.E. Chronic Fatigue Syndrome.

Access to Work provides additional support for individuals whose health or disability affects the way they do their job. It provides individuals and their employers with advice and support with extra costs which may arise because of an individual’s needs. Access to Work does not replace the duty an employer has under the Equality Act 2010 to make reasonable adjustments.

Work Choice is a specialist disability employment programme that provides tailored support to help disabled people who face the most complex barriers to employment, find and stay in work and ultimately help them progress into unsupported employment, where it is appropriate for the individual.

Jobcentre Plus Disability Employment Advisers can provide support and advice for disabled people who need help finding and retaining employment. They can refer individuals to specialist programmes, including Work Choice, and can use the professional expertise of Work Psychologists, who specialise in working with disabled people. Disability Employment Advisers can advocate with employers on the individual’s behalf and help employers to explore job solutions such as the restructuring of a job’s tasks/environment, or the provision/change of equipment.

The Government published ‘The disability and health employment strategy: the discussion so far’ on 17 December 2013. This paper sets out a range of proposals to further improve our employment support for disabled people and those with health conditions.

The Government recognises that getting the right support at the right time is particularly important for disabled people and those with a health condition so as part of our vision for future employment support we are developing a new Employment Gateway. This will be a light-touch process based on an individual’s strengths and needs and will direct people to the most appropriate support.

In order to support individuals to stay in work where possible we are putting in place a new Health and Work Service (HWS).The HWS will provide occupational health advice and support for employees, employers and GP’s to help individuals with a health condition to stay in or return to work.

The intention is to introduce the service by the end of 2014.