Source · Select Committees · Public Accounts Committee
Recommendation 1
1
On the basis of a report by the Comptroller and Auditor General, we took evidence...
Conclusion
On the basis of a report by the Comptroller and Auditor General, we took evidence from the Department of Health and Social Care (the Department) and NHS England on the provision of palliative and end-of-life care, and the funding of England’s independent adult hospices.1 We also took evidence from Baroness Ilora Finlay of Llandaff, Professor Fliss Murtagh and Hospice UK.
Government Response
Response Pending
HM Government
Response Pending
The government agrees with the committee’s recommendation: service specifications for adults and children and young people, outlining expectations of what palliative care and end-of-life care services are commissioned. This is further supported by NHS England’s recently published strategic commissioning framework, which provides a step- by-step guide, aligned to the commissioning cycle, supporting commissioning to establish what is required from individual providers, including hospices, to meet the overall needs of their population. 1b PAC recommendation: The Department and NHS England should use the opportunity of the Modern Service Framework to: • establish how much of this is delivered by hospices; and The government disagrees with the Committee’s recommendation: Guidance on how ICBs can move towards population health delivery models and commissioning was also published alongside the Neighbourhood Health Framework on 17 March 2026. This states that NHS England will work with selected ICBs to develop new payment models to support neighbourhood services, including for those at end of life and will outline the co-designed payment approaches for all ICBs to consider shortly. 1c PAC recommendation: The Department and NHS England should use the opportunity of the Modern Service Framework to: • determine fair levels of ICB funding for hospices. The government agrees with Committee’s recommendation. Commissioning Framework. The planned publication of Autumn 2026 of Palliative Care and End-of-Life Care Modern Service Framework (MSF) provides an important opportunity to further strengthen commissioning and improve sustainability of palliative care and end‑of‑life care through consideration of contracting and commissioning arrangements. The department recognises that there is currently a mix of contracting models in the hospice sector. By supporting ICBs to commission strategically, we can move away from grant and block contract models. In the long term, this will aid sustainability and help hospices’ ability to plan ahead.