House of Commons Hansard Written Answers for 5 Dec 2005 (pt 10)

5 Dec 2005 : Column 934W—continued

Rights of Way

Mr. Laxton: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what estimate she has made of how many kilometres of additional rights of way on foot there would be if the public were to have access to all of the coastline of England. [33590]

Jim Knight: I cannot currently provide a reliable estimate.

In line with Defra five year strategy we are looking at ways to improve access to the coast. We have asked the Countryside Agency, working together with its Natural England confederation partners English Nature and the

5 Dec 2005 : Column 935W

Rural Development Service, to undertake research and analysis to identify possible options to improve access to the coast. One of the options to be investigated will include possible improvements to the rights of way network using existing rights of way legislation.

As part of this work, the Natural England confederation partners are undertaking an information gathering exercise to collect data on a national basis to gain a comprehensive picture of the coast and existing access provision. They will report on their findings in 2006 in advance of a public consultation document which we aim to issue in October 2006. At that stage I will be in a better position to estimate the extent to which public rights of way would need to increase, if that was the option chosen as the best way to improve access to the coast.

Waste Disposal

Dr. Kumar: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment she has made of the environmental effects of using incinerators to dispose of waste. [26495]

Mr. Bradshaw: Waste incineration with energy recovery offers a substantial climate change benefit compared to the alternative of landfill. This is a result of displaced fossil fuel from conventional power generation, reduced methane emissions from landfill and additional recovery of metals for recycling.

Defra has published an independent study, 'Review of the Environmental and Health Effects of Waste Management', which concluded that on the evidence from studies so far, the treatment of municipal solid

5 Dec 2005 : Column 936W

waste—including by incineration—has at most a minor effect on human health and the environment. The report is available on Defra's website at: www.defra.gov.uk/environment/waste/research/health/index.htm.

Wildlife and Countryside Act

Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many convictions for possession of birds listed on Schedule 4 to the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 which have relied on DNA samples as evidence have been successful; and in how many such cases her Department provided to the police registration details maintained under section 7 of the Act. [33555]

Jim Knight: The Department does not keep a record of the specific evidence used in prosecutions.

EDUCATION AND SKILLS

Adoption

Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what average time adults have waited from application to completion of adoption proceedings of a child in (a) Southend, (b) Essex, (c) Greater London and (d) England and Wales in each of the last 10 years for which figures are available. [34294]

Ms Harman: I have been asked to reply.

Figures relating to adoptions dealt with in the county courts to the questions can be found in the following tables.
County CourtsEngland & Wales

Step parent adoptions
Placements
Foreign adoptions
All

Orders made Average waiting time (weeks) % }20 weeks Orders made Average waiting time (weeks) % }20 weeks Orders made Average waiting time (weeks) % }20 weeks Orders made Average waiting time (weeks) % }20 weeks

2000–01 728 29.8 80.4 2,029 20.0 91.6 24 21.3 87.5 2,781 22.5 88.6

2001–02 792 34.0 68.4 2,645 22.3 85.7 54 27.7 70.4 3,491 25.0 81.5

2002–03 676 34.4 73.4 2,830 21.1 89.4 58 31.9 77.6 3,564 23.8 86.2

2003–04 737 40.1 72.5 3,398 23.6 88.1 69 64.7 69.6 4,204 27.1 85.1

2004–05 551 28.0 83.5 3,092 18.7 92.9 33 29.6 90.9 3,676 20.2 91.4

London

Step parent adoptions
Placements
Foreign adoptions
All

Orders made Average waiting time (weeks) % }20 weeks Orders made Average waiting time (weeks) % }20 weeks Orders made Average waiting time (weeks) % }20 weeks Orders made Average waiting time (weeks) % }20 weeks

2000–01 29 23.2 89.7 133 25.7 83.5 3 30.0 66.7 165 25.4 84.2

2001–02 42 32.8 71.4 147 31.0 72.1 4 34.1 75.0 193 31.5 72.0

2002–03 27 38.5 66.7 159 29.4 75.5 7 49.6 57.1 193 31.4 73.6

2003–04 48 49.6 60.4 427 32.8 81.5 15 56.4 73.3 490 35.1 79.2

2004–05 29 32.2 75.9 349 27.7 84.5 4 26.0 100.0 382 28.0 84.0

5 Dec 2005 : Column 937W

Essex area

Step parent adoptions
Placements
Foreign adoptions
All

Orders made Average waiting time (weeks) % }20 weeks Orders made Average waiting time (weeks) % }20 weeks Orders made Average waiting time (weeks) % }20 weeks Orders made Average waiting time (weeks) % }20 weeks

2000–01 5 14.2 100.0 77 20.6 96.1 0 0.0 0.0 82 20.2 96.3

2001–02 8 15.4 100.0 115 21.0 89.6 1 4.4 100.0 124 20.5 90.3

2002–03 13 31.3 84.6 109 18.0 97.2 1 6.9 100.0 123 19.3 95.9

2003–04 15 33.6 86.7 109 21.6 89.0 0 0.0 0.0 124 23.0 88.7

2004–05 10 23.7 90.0 108 18.5 90.7 0 0.0 0.0 118 18.9 90.7

Southend

Step parent adoptions
Placements
All

Orders made Average waiting time (weeks) % }20 weeks Orders made Average waiting time (weeks) % }20 weeks Orders made Average waiting time (weeks) % }20 weeks

2000–01 4 14.1 100.0 10 14.6 100.0 14 14.5 100.0

2001–02 2 9.4 100.0 3 32.6 100.0 5 23.3 100.0

2002–03 — — — — — — — — —

2003–04 — — — — — — — — —

2004–05 — — — — — — — — —

	Step parent adoptions	Placements	Foreign adoptions	All
	Orders made	Average waiting time (weeks)	% }20 weeks	Orders made	Average waiting time (weeks)	% }20 weeks	Orders made	Average waiting time (weeks)	% }20 weeks	Orders made	Average waiting time (weeks)	% }20 weeks
2000–01	728	29.8	80.4	2,029	20.0	91.6	24	21.3	87.5	2,781	22.5	88.6
2001–02	792	34.0	68.4	2,645	22.3	85.7	54	27.7	70.4	3,491	25.0	81.5
2002–03	676	34.4	73.4	2,830	21.1	89.4	58	31.9	77.6	3,564	23.8	86.2
2003–04	737	40.1	72.5	3,398	23.6	88.1	69	64.7	69.6	4,204	27.1	85.1
2004–05	551	28.0	83.5	3,092	18.7	92.9	33	29.6	90.9	3,676	20.2	91.4

	Step parent adoptions	Placements	Foreign adoptions	All
	Orders made	Average waiting time (weeks)	% }20 weeks	Orders made	Average waiting time (weeks)	% }20 weeks	Orders made	Average waiting time (weeks)	% }20 weeks	Orders made	Average waiting time (weeks)	% }20 weeks
2000–01	29	23.2	89.7	133	25.7	83.5	3	30.0	66.7	165	25.4	84.2
2001–02	42	32.8	71.4	147	31.0	72.1	4	34.1	75.0	193	31.5	72.0
2002–03	27	38.5	66.7	159	29.4	75.5	7	49.6	57.1	193	31.4	73.6
2003–04	48	49.6	60.4	427	32.8	81.5	15	56.4	73.3	490	35.1	79.2
2004–05	29	32.2	75.9	349	27.7	84.5	4	26.0	100.0	382	28.0	84.0

	Step parent adoptions	Placements	Foreign adoptions	All
	Orders made	Average waiting time (weeks)	% }20 weeks	Orders made	Average waiting time (weeks)	% }20 weeks	Orders made	Average waiting time (weeks)	% }20 weeks	Orders made	Average waiting time (weeks)	% }20 weeks
2000–01	5	14.2	100.0	77	20.6	96.1	0	0.0	0.0	82	20.2	96.3
2001–02	8	15.4	100.0	115	21.0	89.6	1	4.4	100.0	124	20.5	90.3
2002–03	13	31.3	84.6	109	18.0	97.2	1	6.9	100.0	123	19.3	95.9
2003–04	15	33.6	86.7	109	21.6	89.0	0	0.0	0.0	124	23.0	88.7
2004–05	10	23.7	90.0	108	18.5	90.7	0	0.0	0.0	118	18.9	90.7

	Step parent adoptions	Placements	All
	Orders made	Average waiting time (weeks)	% }20 weeks	Orders made	Average waiting time (weeks)	% }20 weeks	Orders made	Average waiting time (weeks)	% }20 weeks
2000–01	4	14.1	100.0	10	14.6	100.0	14	14.5	100.0
2001–02	2	9.4	100.0	3	32.6	100.0	5	23.3	100.0
2002–03	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
2003–04	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
2004–05	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—

After-school Clubs

Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what action she (a) is taking, and (b) plans to take to allow schools to run after-school clubs on their premises; and if she will make a statement. [34218]

Beverley Hughes: Many schools already provide a good range of after school clubs on their premises. The Education Act 2002 gave school governing bodies the power to provide community facilities on school premises which will enable those clubs to develop into formal child care offers where there is parental demand for those services.

The Government want all schools to provide access to extended services, including child care, a varied menu of study support, and before and after school clubs, by 2010, with half of all primaries and a third of all secondaries doing so by 2008.

To support schools in setting up and embedding extended services, we have committed £840 million up to 2008. These funds can be used flexibly to help address any practical issues that schools may be facing to develop extended services.

We have also asked the National Remodelling Team(NRT) within the Teacher Development Agency, working with voluntary sector partners such as Continyou and 4Children to support LAs and schools nationally as they implement extended services.

Autism (Funding)

John Penrose: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills whether guidelines will be published for local education authorities on funding for pupils with autism through (a) elective home learning, (b) dedicated autism-specific units within special schools and (c) adapted general provision within special schools. [34147]

5 Dec 2005 : Column 938W

Maria Eagle: We have no plans to publish such guidelines.

It is for local authorities to decide how to deploy the funds available to them to meet the needs of children with special educational needs (SEN), including those children with autistic spectrum disorders (ASDs). Budgeted expenditure by local authorities on meeting children's SEN in 2005–06 is £4.1 billion, some 13 per cent. of all education spending. In 2004 the Department published guidance The management of SEN expenditure" providing information and suggested approaches to managing this expenditure. In 2002 the Department, with the Department of Health, published Good Practice Guidance on ASDs which gave pointers to good practice, including pointers on funding and home-based provision.

Local authorities have a duty to keep their arrangements for special educational provision under review and it is for them to take decisions about SEN provision in their schools, in consultation with the schools including special schools, and fund that provision appropriately. Funding for individual pupils with autism in special schools is through their SEN statements, which set out their needs and the provision required to meet those needs.

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