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27 Feb 2008 : Column 1732W—continued

Accident and Emergency Departments: Standards

Mr. Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health to what factors his Department ascribes the increase in the number of people waiting more than four hours in accident and emergency departments indicated in the most recent quarterly figures. [188178]

Mr. Bradshaw: The A and E data at national level do not allow us to examine causes of poor performance.

It is for primary care trusts and strategic health authorities (SHAs) to work with national health service organisations to ensure they are providing an appropriate level of high quality care for patients. SHAs are actively engaged in this and working closely with challenged organisations to address issues that may arise which affect performance. These issues vary depending on local circumstances. All trusts need to be working to this operational standard.

Autism

Mr. Evennett: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much was spent on services for adults with autism by each primary care trust in London in the last five years for which figures are available. [185734]

Mr. Bradshaw: This information is not held centrally.

However, the Government recently announced, through the comprehensive spending review, that local authority funding will increase by £2.6 billion by 2010-11 and national health service funding will increase from £35 billion in 1997-98 to £110 billion in 2010-11. It is for local NHS organisations to best determine how to allocate these funds.

Autism: Children

Mr. Jenkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what funding is available to families with children diagnosed with autism to help them with medical expenses; [187731]

(2) what the (a) mean and (b) median waiting time was from diagnosis of children with autism to treatment in (i) 2004-05, (ii) 2005-06 and (iii) 2006-07; [187733]

(3) what expenditure the NHS incurred on the treatment and care of a child diagnosed in each level of autism spectrum in the last 12 months. [187861]

Mr. Ivan Lewis: It is for individual national health service trusts to determine the level of funding available from their general allocations for the medical needs of children with autism, taking into consideration locally identified needs and assessments of individuals.

We do not hold information centrally on waiting times or NHS expenditure for autism.

Autism: Training

Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what training staff who undertake assessments through Fair Access to Care Services receive in autism spectrum disorders. [187233]

Mr. Ivan Lewis: Staff training is the responsibility of local authorities.

27 Feb 2008 : Column 1733W

“Better Services for people with an autistic spectrum disorder: A note clarifying current Government policy and describing good practice” was published on 16 November 2006. A copy is available in the Library. It clarifies the nature and intent of existing Government policy as it relates to adults with an autistic spectrum disorder.

Care Homes: Elderly

Mr. Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many care homes for older people were found by the Commission for Social Care Inspection to be in breach of each of the national minimum standards in the last year for which figures are available. [188180]

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Mr. Ivan Lewis: We have been informed by the Commission for Social Care Inspection (CSCI) that its inspectors assess the performance of care homes against each national minimum standard (NMS) and rate them on a four point scale. A score of four indicates that a standard has been exceeded. A score of three shows that it has been met. A score of two denotes that the standard was almost met with minor shortfalls—this indicates that one of the numerous sub-sections in the standard has not been completely met. A score of one means the standard has not been met.

The following table shows the numbers of care homes for older people inspected and their performance against the NMS for the year ending 31 March 2007.

Residential care homes for older people—performance against NMS, year ending 31 March 200
			Scores
	NMS	Homes evaluated against this standard	1	2	3	4
1	Information	9,989	259	1,921	7,541	268
2	Contracts	9,696	200	1,452	7,960	84
3	Needs assessments	10,522	222	1,473	8,426	401
4	Meeting needs	9,574	313	1,271	7,683	307
5	Trial visits	9,504	28	238	9,064	174
6	Intermediate care	2,078	86	164	1,745	83
7	Service users' plans	10,556	549	4,078	5,338	591
8	Healthcare	10,550	313	1,853	7,794	590
9	Medication	10,537	686	3,495	6,187	169
10	Privacy and dignity	10,531	131	936	8,849	615
11	Dying and death	9,201	68	964	7,686	483
12	Social contact and activities	10,542	279	2,203	6,841	1,219
13	Community contact	10,532	12	262	9,591	667
14	Autonomy and choice	10,520	89	787	9,079	565
15	Meals and mealtimes	10,543	131	1,372	7,938	1,102
16	Complaints	10,546	137	1,161	9,043	205
17	Rights	9,006	34	291	8,639	42
18	Protection	10,539	333	2,004	8,040	162
19	Premises	10,552	462	2,909	6,415	766
20	Shared facilities	9,685	128	1,124	7,875	558
21	Lavatories and washing facilities	9,666	281	1,761	7,305	319
22	Adaptations and equipment	9,569	230	1,841	7,310	188
23	Space requirements	9,485	67	647	8,388	383
24	Furniture and fittings	9,781	170	1,920	7,266	425
25	Heating and lighting	9,704	370	2,151	6,980	203
26	Hygiene and infection control	10,544	288	2,004	7,647	605
27	Staff compliment	10,535	357	1,667	8,181	330
28	Staff qualifications	10,093	189	2,032	6,968	904
29	Staff recruitment	10,512	724	2,518	7,074	196
30	Staff training	10,516	317	2,593	6,955	651
31	Day to day operation	10,520	320	1,985	7,390	825
32	Ethos	9,509	214	879	7,594	822
33	Quality assurance	10,511	462	2,692	6,795	562
34	Financial procedures	8,778	199	865	7,654	60
35	Service users' money	9,966	117	767	8,975	107
36	Staff supervision	9,860	562	2,688	6,449	161
37	Record keeping	9,485	478	2,684	6,238	85
38	Safe working practices	10,542	647	3,432	6,235	228
Note: The total number of homes measured against NMS for older people was 10,565. Not all homes are evaluated against all standards at every inspection. Inspections may be themed and focus on particular aspects of a service. Source: CSCI NMS data—31 March 2007

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