Into Year Two: Time for Women's Health to Take Centre Stage

Blog by our Chair, Gill Furniss MP

As we move into the second year of this Parliament, it’s time to ask: what has really been delivered for women’s health? The Government’s recently published 10-Year Health Plan for England outlines a wide-reaching vision for healthcare transformation. Yet, glaringly, it contains no specific commitments on women’s health.

This omission is deeply disappointing. Women make up 51% of the population. To build a health system that works for everyone, it must be designed around the distinct needs of women. It is welcome, therefore, that the Government has reiterated its commitment to the Women’s Health Strategy, now in its third year. But warm words must now translate into action.

Since the Strategy’s launch in 2022, we have seen some meaningful progress. The national conversation on menopause has shifted. Women’s Health Hubs are being piloted. Campaigns have helped reduce stigma around menstrual health. Yet our most recent report, The Power of Informed Choice, shows how much further there is to go.

Too many women are still not listened to. They are denied clear, accessible information about their health, and too often must navigate fragmented services to get the care they need. Informed choice remains the exception, not the rule.

That’s why the APPG on Women’s Health is calling for a bold new chapter of delivery, one that fully integrates women’s health into mainstream NHS planning. Our latest inquiry identified five priority areas for Government action:

1. Education and Training

Mandatory training on endometriosis, PCOS, menopause, and gynaecological health must be embedded in both medical school curricula and ongoing professional development. This will support earlier diagnoses, better care, and ultimately, more informed patients.

2. Accessible Health Information

All women should be given information in formats they can understand, in the languages they speak, and in ways that reflect their lived experiences. Too many still turn to the internet in desperation. That is not choice, it’s a symptom of systemic failure.

3. Women’s Health Hubs

Every Integrated Care System (ICS) should have a fully funded and functioning Women’s Health Hub. These hubs offer the kind of joined-up, accessible care that women need throughout their lives, from menstrual health to menopause.

4. Early Intervention

From pharmacies to GPs, we must equip primary care to spot issues early and manage them effectively. Prevention must replace crisis management.

5. Empowering Pharmacies

Pharmacies are uniquely placed to support women with menopause symptoms and other health needs, yet they are underutilised. With specialist training, they can play a transformative role in accessible, local care.

The Women’s Health Strategy has laid the foundation. Now, in this second year of Government, we need to build, urgently, and with ambition. The vision for healthcare reform rightly focuses on shifting care from hospital to community, from treatment to prevention, and from analogue to digital. Women’s health must be central to all three.

We cannot wait another year for women’s needs to be taken seriously. This is the moment to deliver the promises of the Strategy and enshrine women’s health equity as a core test of any healthcare system that claims to be modern, fair and fit for the future.

 APPG on Women’s Health Response to the Women’s Health Strategy

The APPG on Women’s Health is pleased to publish the following statement in response to the publication of the Department of Health and Social Care’s Women’s Health Strategy.

The APPG on Women’s Health welcomes the Government’s focus on women’s health and the launch of this Women’s Health Strategy.

In recent years, the APPG has heard first-hand from those experiencing conditions that affect only women, or have a disproportionate impact on women, and believes women’s health needs to be made a higher priority by the Government and the NHS.

The APPG welcomes the commitment set out in the Strategy to place women’s voices at the centre of the strategy’s implementation. Too often, women’s voices are not heard in the health system, reflecting a deprioritisation of women’s health concerns.

A main focus of the APPG is the introduction of women’s health hubs which we look forward to working with the Government to implement.

The APPG is pleased to see a focus on maternity care, endometriosis and menopause. The APPG welcomes the Strategy’s commitment to improving women’s health services across the life course.

The APPG looks forward to working with the Government, stakeholders, clinical societies and patient groups to see the implementation of the recommendations outlined in the report.