| Previous Section | Index | Home Page |
10 Nov 2005 : Column 761W—continued
Special Schools
Sammy Wilson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many special schools have (a) opened and (b) closed in the Province since 1997. [25787]
Angela E. Smith:
One new special school opened in June 2005 and 15 units attached to mainstream schools have also been established over the period since 1997.
10 Nov 2005 : Column 762W
Three school amalgamations (involving 7 special schools) have also been announced. There have been two special school closures since 1997. The following tables contain detail of this information.
| Education and Library Board area | School | Date of closure |
|---|---|---|
| Belfast | Jaffe Centre | 31 August 2001 |
| Southern | Fallowfield Special | 31 August 2002 |
| Education and Library Board area | Schools | Date of opening |
|---|---|---|
| Western | Strabane—multi-functional: moderate learning difficulties, severe learning difficulties, speech and language | June 2005 |
Spiked Drinks
Mrs. Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what information he collects on the prevalence of spiking drinks in the Province. [24923]
Mr. Hanson: A range of statutory and voluntary sector organisations work together to raise awareness of the dangers of drink spiking. This has included beer mat and poster campaigns in pubs and clubs funded by the Police Service of Northern Ireland and the Health Promotion Agency.
It is difficult to estimate the prevalence of drink spiking in Northern Ireland. Spiking drinks can take many forms and includes the addition of alcohol, prescription drugs and illegal drugs (eg Ecstasy) as well as the so called date rape drugs such as Rohypnol. Victims may not realise their drink was spiked, and even when a more serious offence has occurred the victim may not be aware until some time after the incident. In some cases the victim may not tell anyone what has happened to them.
10 Nov 2005 : Column 763W
Drink spiking may constitute an offence under the Offences Against The Persons Act 1861 (Section 22, administering poison to endanger life; and Section 23, administering poison to aggrieve). In 2004–05 a total of six cases were recorded under these Sections of the Act. However it is not possible to easily differentiate between cases of drink spiking and other poisonings. Drink spiking is difficult to prove and is often connected with more serious offences such as sexual assaults. Consequently in many cases the more serious offence will be recorded rather than those offences under Sections 22 and 23 of the Act.
Substitute Teachers
Sammy Wilson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what estimate he has made of the spending by each education and library board in the Province on substitute teachers in each of the last five years. [25771]
Angela E. Smith: The amount spent by each of the education and library boards and grant maintained integrated schools on substitute teachers in the last five years is in the following table.
Women Sector (Funding)
Mark Durkan: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what changes he plans to make to the funding arrangements for the Northern Ireland women'sector. [26685]
Mr. Hanson: The Government has provided initial financial support and established a cross Departmental Review Group to consider longer term support to women's organisations delivering services following the end of previous funding streams in the first financial year.
Following consideration of the report of the review group I extended the short term programme and with ministerial colleagues have set in motion potential
10 Nov 2005 : Column 764W
longer term support for these organisations. This means that we have been able to provide an additional £1,850,000 in the current financial year to protect these key organisations.
With regard to the future women's centres will have to demonstrate and provide supporting evidence of need for these services and will have to compete with others that may want to deliver the same services, however given the capacity of the centres I am confident that they will continue to serve those in most need for many years to come.
Warm Homes Scheme
Mrs. Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many households received funding from the Warm Homes Scheme in the last 12 months in each district council area in the Province. [24890]
Mr. Hanson: Under the Warm Homes Scheme, eligible applicants are provided with insulation measures. The Warm Homes Plus scheme provides heating and insulation measures for all eligible pensioners.
The information is as follows:
(77)These columns include those households which received both heating and insulation measures.