Written question WQ92032

The Welsh Government is committed to providing high quality services for people with cerebral palsy in Wales. In November 2022 we published the Neurological Conditions Quality Statement which sets out Welsh Government’s vision for high quality services for people of all ages living with neurological conditions in Wales.

The Quality Statement sets out the outcomes and standards we expect NHS organisations to achieve in delivering services for people with these conditions. It was co-produced with the Neurological Conditions Implementation Group (NCIG) and the twenty plus third sector partners represented on the NCIG by the Wales Neurological Alliance. I expect all NHS organisations in Wales to use the Quality Statement as the basis for planning how services for people with neurological conditions are developed and delivered, including those with cerebral palsy.

NHS organisations will be supported to implement the Quality Statement by the NHS Wales Executive (the Executive). This is the body responsible for driving improvements in the quality and safety of care. The Executive will do this in collaboration with National Clinical Leads, and a suite of Strategic Clinical and Implementation Networks, all of which will develop work plans setting out their priorities. Since being established in April 2023, the Executive has been phasing in a series of networks and I expect the new Neurological Conditions Strategic Clinical Network (NCSN) to be established very soon, alongside the appointment of a new National Clinical Lead for Neurological Conditions. These are critical building blocks to support the implementation of the Neurological Conditions Quality Statement.

I expect the work plan for the NCSN to take into account current and future demands to manage sustainability of services for Neurological Conditions.

In addition, the funding of networks and service provision is a commissioning and planning issue for Health Boards based on their populations needs.