Lords consider bill amendment to recognise wheelchair and community equipment access as a key factor in tackling health inequality

Last Updated on 13/02/2026 by Sarah Sarsby

A recent House of Lords debate on the English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill has highlighted long-standing challenges in wheelchair and community equipment provision — and how a proposed amendment could help address them.

The amendment

Amendment 165A to Clause 44 of the Bill, tabled by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath, would add the following to the list of “general health determinants” that authorities must consider when addressing health inequalities:

“(f) the degree of ease or difficulty with which persons have access to high quality wheelchair and community equipment provision.”

This amendment would include wheelchair and community equipment provision in the list of ‘general health determinants’ that authorities need to have regard to as a cause of health inequality.

Debate highlights

Peers from across the House voiced support for the amendment, describing the current state of wheelchair and community equipment provision as fragmented, inconsistent, and underfunded.

Watch the debate from 19:56:28 via this link: https://parliamentlive.tv/event/index/dacc4873-aaf6-4230-83a1-46ad665ad36b?in=19:56:28

Lord Hunt of Kings Heath called the current system “a disgrace,” citing evidence from the Wheelchair Alliance and the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Access to Disability Equipment showing the lack of national standards, independent regulation, and clear repair or complaints processes. “Many disabled people face long waiting times, delays in hospital discharge, loss of independence, social isolation and avoidable deterioration in health and well-being,” he said.

He explained that wheelchair and community equipment services, though often reaching the same individuals, are managed separately — one primarily by the NHS, the other by local authorities and integrated care boards. This division, he argued, leads to inefficiency and poor outcomes. “They should operate in tandem, but they are two distinct systems,” he said, urging closer collaboration.

Lord Shinkwin, speaking as a wheelchair user, said the amendment “puts the issue on the radar,” adding that access to wheelchair and community equipment services “is a health inequality issue.” He warned that the system’s fragmentation and lack of accountability have allowed inequality to become normalised. “Fragmentation may make for better ICB balance sheets in the short term, but history shows that, in the medium term, it is a very costly false economy.”

Baroness Griffin of Princethorpe added that one in three disabled people are still waiting for approved equipment, and that 74 percent of delayed hospital discharges are linked to equipment delays. The amendment, she said, would help make this area of provision a recognised factor in tackling health inequalities.

Government response

Responding for the UK Government, Baroness Taylor of Stevenage acknowledged the concerns but said existing legislation already requires provision of such services. In her response in the House of Lords, she said:

“Local authorities in England already have a statutory duty under various legislation, including the Care Act 2014 and the Children and Families Act 2014, to make arrangements for the provision of disability aids and community equipment to meet the assessed eligible needs of individuals who are resident in their area. In terms of delivery, NHS England supports integrated care boards and wheelchair providers to reduce regional variation in the quality and provision of NHS wheelchairs and to reduce delays in people receiving timely intervention and wheelchair equipment.”

She added that she would raise the issues with colleagues in DHSC and MHCLG and confirmed that the Bill’s existing scope already allows for access to equipment to be considered under “general health determinants.”

Watch Baroness Taylor’s response to Amendment 165A from 16:06:27 via this link: https://parliamentlive.tv/event/index/49b1e807-8829-4a75-a307-4a738052e65b?in=16:06:27

What it could mean for BHTA members

If accepted, Amendment 165A would:

• Formally recognise wheelchair and community equipment provision as a determinant of health.
• Require authorities to show how they are addressing access and quality of provision.
• Potentially influence commissioning priorities and encourage more consistent service standards.

Next steps

The amendment remains under consideration as the Bill progresses through the House of Lords. Its debate marks an important acknowledgment of the essential role that wheelchairs and community equipment play in tackling health inequalities. The BHTA will update members if the amendment is accepted into the Bill.