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15 May 2003 : Column 414W—continued
Child Prisoners
Dr. Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what adjustments have been made to central Government financial support for councils to enable them to assume obligations for children in prisons within their boundaries under the Children Act 1989; [112532]
- (2) what assessment he has made of the financial implications for local authorities of their responsibilities under the Children Act 1989 for children in prisons within their boundary. [112533]
Jacqui Smith: Prison Service establishments are one of a number of institutions that lead to 'out of area' children creating demands on local services in the areas where the institutions are situated. The duties of councils with social services responsibilities towards
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children, including those in prisons, are set out in the Children Act 1989 and its associated regulations and guidance. In order to assist councils in making their decisions, the Government are committed to reducing the level of ring fencing. As the Local Government White Paper "Strong Local Leadership—Quality Public Services" noted, too high a level of ring fencing undermines local management and democracy, leading to inefficiency in service delivery.
The Formula Spending Share (FSS) was last reviewed in 2002 with the new formula being introduced from April 2003, to create the current children's distribution of children's allocations. The FSS will now be stable until 2006–07.
Children's Trusts
Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to his answer of 14 April 2003, Official Report, column 605W, on children's trusts, when the pilot schemes will begin; how long they will run for; and when an assessment of their success will be completed. [111558]
Jacqui Smith: The successful pilot children's trusts will begin in 2003. These trusts will be on-going and an evaluation will be undertaken covering the period from establishment through the first three years of operation.
Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to his answer of 14 April 2003, Official Report, column 605W, on children's trusts, if he will list the criteria that his Department will use to assess the proposals for each children's trust; when he expects to make an announcement regarding who has been successful; and when the children's trusts will become operational. [111559]
Jacqui Smith: Children's trusts will be assessed on the basis of the criteria set out in annex B of the guide published on 28 January on children's trusts. Potential sites are still being assessed. Ministers will make an announcement about successful applications once they have had time to consider in detail the information gained through the assessment process. Children's trusts will become operational in 2003.
Choice of Doctor
Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent discussions his Department has held with the Southend-on-Sea Primary Care Trust on the application of the Choice of Doctor Regulations 1998; and what powers he has in the event of a breach of these regulations. [113125]
Mr. Lammy [holding answer 13 May 2003]: These regulations place duties on primary care trusts (PCTs) to assist patients to register with a general practitioner or personal medical services pilot provider. On 16 April, Southend-on-Sea PCT sought advice from the Department on the effect of the regulations. In reply, also on 16 April, the Department confirmed its agreement with the PCT's interpretation of the regulations.
Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what action he will take to ensure that residents in Castle Point affected by closure of the Walker Drive general practitioners practice are given a choice of new general practitioner. [113126]
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Mr. Lammy [holding answer 13 May 2003]: This is a matter for the local primary care trusts, which are both taking steps to increase primary care capacity and to ensure that the patients concerned are aware of the options open to them.
Correspondence
Mr. Kaufman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he will reply to the letter to him of 7 April 2003 from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton with regard to Ms Marion Ratnor. [113439]
Mr. Milburn: A reply was sent to my right hon. Friend on 14 May 2003.
Dementia
Mrs. Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is taking to provide additional financial support towards care costs of sufferers of dementia. [109339]
Jacqui Smith: The Government are committed to improving standards of health and social care and people with dementia will benefit from the new investment that is being made available to support this commitment.
For example this financial year the Government have made £584 million available to fund care home residents' nursing care costs. Anyone in a care home providing nursing care will have benefited from this including people with dementia. Recently issued guidance emphasises that nurses, in determining residents' needs for nursing care, should be particularly mindful of the needs of people with dementia.
£100 million has been awarded in 2003–04 under the Carers Grant to local councils to provide short-term breaks for carers to enable them to continue their caring role: carers of people with dementia will benefit from this grant. The Carers Grant has been extended to 2006 during which time it will more than double to £185 million to provide extended care and 130,000 further breaks for carers.
There have been substantial increases in the level of funding provided for social services in recent years. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Health announced on 17 April 2002 our intention to increase resources to social services by an annual average of 6 per cent. in real terms from 2003–04 to 2005–06. In addition the very significant increases in national health service funding will help provide new and better health services for people with dementia.
Mr. Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether persons suffering from dementia are tagged in (a) NHS hospitals and (b) nursing homes; and if he will make a statement. [111478]
Jacqui Smith: The routine use of electronic tagging is not acceptable but it may be justified on an individual basis. It is very rare for people with dementia to be tagged.
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Digital Hearing Aids
Mr. Hunter: To ask the Secretary of State for Health which NHS trusts have fitted digital hearing aids; and how many they have fitted. [112429]
Jacqui Smith: The table shows those national health service trusts and primary care trusts that have fitted digital hearing aids as part of the modernising hearing aid services (MHAS) project, along with the sites where
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the aids are fitted. It is not possible to provide a detailed breakdown of the number of aids fitted at each site but a total of 83,397 digital hearing aids, including about 1,600 children's hearing aids, were fitted as part of the MHAS project by the end of April 2003. In addition, a number of sites have applied for access to the Purchasing and Supply Agency's contracts for digital hearing aids outside the project. Information is not held centrally regarding the number of digital aids fitted outside the MHAS programme.
| Modernised Sites | ||
|---|---|---|
| Addenbroke's NHS Trust | Addenbrooke's Hospital | Adult/Child |
| Barking, Havering and Redbridge Hospitals NHS Trust | Oldchurch Hospital | Adult |
| Barking and Dagenham PCT | Vicarage Fields Health Centre | Child |
| Basildon and Thurrock General Hospitals NHS Trust | Basildon and Thurrock Hospital | Adult/Child |
| Birmingham Children's Hospital NHS Trust | Birmingham Children's Hospital | Child |
| Bolton Primary Care NHS Trust | Royal Bolton Hospital | Adult/Child |
| Bournemouth Primary Care Trust | Boscombe Community Hospital | Adult/Child |
| Bradford Hospitals NHS Trust | Bradford Royal Infirmary | Adult/Child |
| Brighton Health Care NHS Trust | Royal Sussex County Hospital | Adult/Child |
| Central Manchester and Manchester Children's University Hospitals NHS Trust | Manchester Royal Infirmary | Adult/Child |
| Central Manchester PCT | Moss Side Health Centre | Child |
| City Hospitals Sunderland NHS Trust | Sunderland Royal Hospital | Adult/Child |
| Countess of Chester Hospital NHS Trust | Countess of Chester Hospital | Adult/Child |
| Croydon PCT | Crystal Centre, Croydon | Child |
| East Cheshire NHS Trust | Macclesfield District General Hospital | Adult/Child |
| East Sussex Hospitals NHS Trust | Conquest Hospital/ Princess Alice Hospital | Adult/Child |
| Essex Rivers Healthcare NHS Trust | Essex County Hospital | Adult/Child |
| George Elliot Hospital NHS Trust | George Elliot Hospital | Adult/Child |
| Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Trust | Gloucestershire Royal Hospital | Adult/Child |
| Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children NHS Trust | Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children | Child |
| Hammersmith Hospitals NHS Trust | Charing Cross Hospital | Adult/Child |
| James Paget Healthcare NHS Trust | James Paget Hospital | Adult/Child |
| Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust | Leeds General Infirmary | Adult/Child |
| Mayday Healthcare NHS Trust | Mayday University Hospital | Adult |
| Mid Cheshire Healthcare NHS Trust | Leighton Hospital | Adult/Child |
| Morecombe Bay Hospitals NHS Trust | Westmorland General Hospital | Adult |
| North Hampshire Hospitals NHS Trust | North Hampshire Hospital | Adult/Child |
| Northern Devon NHS Healthcare Trust | North Devon District Hospital | Adult/Child |
| Peterborough Hospitals NHS Trust | Edith Cavell Hospital | Adult/Child |
| Queens Medical Centre Nottingham University NHS Trust | Queens Medical Centre | Adult/Child |
| Rochdale NHS Trust | Birch Hill Hospital | Adult/Child |
| Royal Berkshire And Battle Hospitals NHS Trust | Royal Berkshire Hospital, Reading | Adult/Child |
| Royal Cornwall Hospitals NHS Trust | Royal Cornwall Hospital | Adult |
| Royal Devon and Exeter Healthcare NHS Trust | Royal Devon and Exeter Hospital | Adult/Child |
| Royal Free Hampstead NHS Trust | Royal National Throat, Nose and Ear Hospital | Adult |
| Royal Free Hampstead NHS Trust | Royal Free Hospital | Adult/Child |
| Royal Liverpool and Broadgreen University Hospitals NHS Trust | Royal Liverpool University Hospital | Adult |
| Royal Shrewsbury and Princess Royal Hospitals | Royal Shrewsbury Hospital | Adult/Child |
| Royal United Hospital Bath NHS Trust | Royal United Hospital Bath | Adult |
| Salford Primary Care NHS Trust | Hope Hospital | Adult/Child |
| Sandwell and West Birmingham Hospitals NHS Trust | City Hospital | Adult/Child |
| Sheffield Children's Hospital NHS Trust | Sheffield Children's Hospital | Child |
| Sherwood Forest Hospitals NHS Trust | King's Mill Centre | Adult |
| Sherwood Forest Hospitals NHS Trust | King's Mill Centre | Child |
| Southampton University Hospitals NHS Trust | Royal South Hants Hospital | Adult |
| Swindon and Marlborough NHS Trust | Princess Margaret Hospital | Adult/Child |
| Trafford Healthcare NHS Trust | Trafford General Hospital | Adult/Child |
| Trafford Healthcare NHS Trust | Hearing Assessment Centre for Children | Child |
| United Bristol Healthcare NHS Trust (Child) | Bristol Children's Hospital | Child |
| University Hospital Birmingham NHS Trust | Selly Oak Hospital | Adult |
| University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust | Leicester Royal Infirmary | Adult/Child |
| West Dorset General Hospitals NHS Trust | Dorset County Hospital | Adult/Child |
| Whipps Cross University Hospital NHS Trust | Hurst Road Health Centre | Adult/Child |
| Winchester and Eastleigh Healthcare NHS Trust | Royal Hampshire County Hospital | Adult |
| Windsor and Maidenhead PCT | King Edward VII Hospital | Adult/Child |
| Wirral Hospital NHS Trust | Arrowe Park Hospital | Adult/Child |
| Wolverhampton Health Care NHS Trust | West Park Rehabilitation Hospital | Adult/Child |
| Wrightington, Wigan and Leigh NHS Trust | Thomas Linacre Centre | Child |
15 May 2003 : Column 419W
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