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Child Abuse
Mr. Nigel Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what arrangements he has made to review the safeguards against harm to children in residential care and in other placements away from home. [33435]
Mr. Dorrell: As my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister announced on 13 June, I have asked Sir William Utting, the former chief inspector of the social services inspectorate in England, to review the existing safeguards for children living away from home.
I have today written to Sir William in the following terms:
Letter to Sir William Utting from Stephen Dorrell, Secretary of State for Health
17 Jun 1996 : Column: 349
Mr. Bowis:
Investigations are continuing and prosecutions still pending in the north west. Until these are completed no decision regarding further inquiries can be made.
Mr. Milburn:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to his answer of 16 May, Official Report, column 536, if he will break down the numbers on supervision registers by district within each region. [33099]
Mr. Bowis:
I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave him on 14 December 1995 at column 809.
Mr. Milburn:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has to encourage the provision of home help services by the private sector. [33052]
Mr. Bowis:
Local authorities are required to include proposals for purchasing non-residential care services from the independent sector in their community care plans. We have encouraged providers in the independent sector to contribute to the consultation stage of these plans.
17 Jun 1996 : Column: 350
Mr. Milburn:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people in the United Kingdom are in residential homes in the most recent year for which figures are available in the (a) 16 to 64, (b) 65 to 74, (c) 75 to 84 and (d) 85 years and over age groups; and in each of those categories if he will list the numbers funded by (i) the local authority on a means tested basis, (ii) the individuals themselves and (iii) the Department of Social Security through preserved rights; and if he will make a statement. [33056]
Mr. Bowis:
Centrally available information for England is provided in the table. Questions relating to Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland are matters for my right hon. Friends the Secretaries of State for Wales, and for Scotland, and my right hon. and learned Friend the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland.
Children's Safeguards Review
The government is grateful to you for agreeing to undertake this review. I enclose a copy of the terms of reference.
The new safeguards introduced in recent years for the protection of children living away from home following the Children Act were the outcome of careful thought and consultation, and of scrutiny in Parliament. Since then, however, it has become clear from court cases and criminal justice investigations that the scale of abuse and of abuse risks was higher than generally appreciated.
An important purpose of your review is to assess whether the safeguards now in place provide so far as is possible protection against these risks as they are now recognised. We are therefore concerned that it should be thorough, and that it should cover the enforcement of the safeguards as well as their principles I know that you will make the review accessible to all those with views and ideas to put across.
There are as you know a number of areas where the Government is planning further initiatives relevant to the protection of all children and other social services users. As already announced, we shall be consulting later this summer on the ethical regulation of the social services professions. Home Office Ministers are announcing today proposals for improved arrangements for checking criminal records and new measures to prevent further crimes by convicted sex offenders after their release from prison. And we shall soon be receiving Tom Burgner's review of social services regulation. If while you are conducting your review there are any points you wish to convey to us as we take the various matters forward I and the other responsible Ministers would be very glad to know of them.
Mrs. Dunwoody:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will institute an immediate public inquiry into the alleged abuse of children in Cheshire homes. [32920]
It is equally important that local authorities and all others with the responsibility for ensuring the safety of children and other vulnerable people in their care should discharge that responsibility scrupulously within the framework of safeguards as it now exists. You may find ways of improving the framework, but it is essential that while your review is in progress all concerned should enforce the existing safeguards with the necessary diligence and wariness.
Stephen Dorrell Childrens's Safeguards Review
to review the safeguards introduced for England and Wales by the Children Act 1989 at its implementation in 1991 and the further measures since taken to protect children living away from home, with particular reference to children's residential homes, foster care and boarding schools;
to assess whether these safeguards are the most effective that can realistically be designed to protect such children from abuse and other harm and whether they are being satisfactorily enforced;
to make recommendations accordingly to the Secretary of State for Health and the Secretary of State for Wales.
| Age | Residents in staffed residential care | Local authority supported residents | People funded by DSS through preserved rights to income support(7) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 18-64 | 49,600 | 36,200 | 34,100 |
| 65-74 | 24,700 | 13,600 | 10,300 |
| 75-84 | 76,800 | 39,000 | 20,200 |
| 85 or over | 118,900 | 50,900 | 33,700 |
Note:
(7) DSS figures relate to February 1995.
Source:
DH annual returns RAC5, SR1 and DSS QSE.
Mr. Milburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people in the United Kingdom are in nursing homes in the most recent year for which figures are available in the (a) 16 to 64, (b) 65 to 74, (c) 75 to 84 and (d) 85 years and over age groups; if he will list in each of those categories the numbers funded by (i) the local authority on a means tested basis, (ii) the individuals themselves, (iii) the Department of Social Security through preserved rights and (iv) NHS contract; and if he will make a statement. [33055]
Mr. Bowis: Centrally available information for England is provided in the table. Question relating to Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland are matters for my right hon. Friends the Secretaries of State for Wales and for Scotland and my right hon. and learned Friend the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland.
17 Jun 1996 : Column: 351
We estimate that around 25 per cent. of elderly people in nursing care currently meet their own costs in full. It is not possible to obtain the number of self-funders by subtracting local authority supported residents and people with preserved rights from the number of residents, since some people receive funding from both Department of Social Security through preserved rights and a local authority.
Information on people funded by the NHS is not centrally available.
| Age | People in nursing care | Local authority supported residents | People funded by DSS through preserved rights to Income Support(8) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 18-64 | 11,800 | 3,400 | 7,600 |
| 65-74 | 19,900 | 5,900 | 7,800 |
| 75-84 | 51,100 | 16,400 | 20,800 |
| 85 or over | 64,500 | 17,500 | 28,900 |
Note:
(8) DSS figures relate to February 1995.
Source:
DH annual returns KO36, SR1 and DSS QSE.
Mr. Milburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people in the United Kingdom were living in (a) residential homes and (b) nursing homes for the most recent year for which figures are available for (i) less than six months, (ii) between six months and a year, (iii) between one and two years, (iv) between two and three years and (v) three years and more; and if he will make a statement. [33057]
Mr. Bowis: Latest centrally available information on length of stay in residential care in England is published in table 3 of "Survey of age, sex and length of stay characteristics of residents of homes for elderly people and younger people who are physically handicapped in England at 31 March 1988", copies of which are available in the Library. Information on length of stay in nursing homes is not centrally available.
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