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25 Feb 2009 : Column 798W—continued
Children: Databases
Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families (1) whether education professionals will be able to access ContactPoint via wireless handheld devices; [256939]
(2) what contingency plans are in place in the event of a breach of security in ContactPoint. [256940]
Beverley Hughes [holding answer 23 February 2009]: ContactPoint is designed, built, operated and managed to HM Government standards for security and complies with the strict controls imposed by HM Government security policy. Data contained within the system are made available only to those authorised users and administrators who have been subject to vetting and have completed mandatory training. Organisations that require access to ContactPoint must meet strict system accreditation requirements. These requirements do not allow access to ContactPoint via wireless handheld devices.
In the event of a breach of security in ContactPoint, we will follow HM Government security policy for incident response and reporting. Our response will be proportional to the severity of the incident and could include:
Immediately shutting down the system and denying access to all users;
Reporting the breach to stakeholders, up to and including the Information Commissioner and Ministers;
Reporting the breach to the Communications and Cryptographic Incident Notification, Reporting and Alerting Scheme (CINRAS); and
Reporting the breach to the National Technical Authority for Information Assurance's Computer Emergency Response Team (GovCertUK).
Following any security breach, a full review would take place and prosecutions would be instigated where appropriate.
Children: Obesity
Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what initiatives the Government has introduced for children of pre-school age to reduce levels of childhood obesity in (a) Hemel Hempstead and (b) Hertfordshire. [250601]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The “Healthy Weight, Healthy Lives” strategy, published in January 2008, set out the Government’s plan to reduce obesity, initially focusing on children. Every child should grow up eating well and enjoying being active and we want parents to have the knowledge and confidence to make this happen. There is no single, simple solution to reducing rates of overweight and obesity and therefore Government are taking action on a number of fronts.
At a national level, the Government are promoting healthy eating and physical activity. The updated Child Health Promotion Programme was published in March 2008. It prioritises obesity prevention and physical activity by promoting positive parenting during pregnancy and the early years of children’s lives. We are working to support as many mothers as possible to breastfeed and to continue to breastfeed for longer—helped by children’s centres, health and other services, all promoting healthy weight. The Healthy Start initiative provides free vitamin supplements and vouchers for milk, fruit and vegetables for low-income pregnant women and children up to age four.
The introduction of the Early Years Foundation Stage for 0 to five-year-olds means that all early years education providers must promote the good health of children, by providing healthy, nutritious food and active play. The Play Strategy, launched in December 2008, sets out how Government will invest £235 million over 2008-09 to 2010-11 to develop play facilities for children of all ages. Ofcom have introduced restrictions on advertising foods that are high in fat, salt and sugar (HFSS) to children.
At a local level, primary care trusts, working with local authorities, are responsible for co-ordinating work to tackle childhood obesity. PCT plans, developed alongside local authority children and young people’s plans, will feed into local area agreements agreed with the Government offices. Local areas will develop and implement their own initiatives based on local needs and circumstances. 130 LAs have chosen to include in their local area agreement at least one child obesity indicator from the National Indicator Set.
All this is supported by the Change4Life movement at a national and local level which aims to help families eat well, move more and live longer and which is initially focused on families with young children. Change4Life is working with a range of commercial and voluntary
sector partners, signing up to play their part and deliver concrete commitments to change both nationally and locally.
Mr. Evennett: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what initiatives his Department has introduced to reduce childhood obesity among children of pre-school age in the London Borough of Bexley. [250742]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The “Healthy Weight, Healthy Lives” strategy, published in January 2008, set out the Government’s plans to reduce obesity, initially focusing on children. Every child should grow up eating well and enjoying being active and we want parents to have the knowledge and confidence to make this happen. There is no single, simple solution to reducing rates of overweight and obesity and therefore Government are taking action on a number of fronts.
At a national level, the Government are promoting healthy eating and physical activity. The updated child health promotion programme was published in March 2008. It prioritises obesity prevention and physical activity by promoting positive parenting during pregnancy and the early years of children’s lives. We are working to support as many mothers as possible to breastfeed and to continue to breastfeed for longer—helped by children’s centres, health and other services, all promoting healthy weight. The healthy start initiative provides free vitamin supplements and vouchers for milk, fruit and vegetables for low-income pregnant women and children up to age four.
The introduction of the early years foundation stage for 0-5 year olds means that all early years education providers must promote the good health of children, by providing healthy, nutritious food and active play. The play strategy, launched in December 2008, sets out how Government will invest £235 million over 2008-09 to 2010-11 to develop play facilities for children of all ages. Ofcom have introduced restrictions on advertising foods that are high in fat, salt and sugar (HFSS) to children.
At a local level, primary care trusts, working with local authorities, are responsible for co-ordinating work to tackle childhood obesity. PCT plans, developed alongside local authority children and young people’s plans, will feed into local area agreements agreed with the Government offices. Local areas will develop and implement their own initiatives based on local needs and circumstances. 130 LAs have chosen to include in their local area agreement at least one child obesity indicator from the National Indicator Set.
All this is supported by the Change4Life movement at a national and local level which aims to help families eat well, move more and live longer and which is initially focussed on families with young children. Change4Life is working with a range of commercial and voluntary sector partners, signing up to play their part and deliver concrete commitments to change both nationally and locally.
Children: Protection
Mrs. Dorries: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families (1) how many children on the Child Protection Register in each region were not allocated a social worker in each year between 1997 and 3 August 2007; and if he will make a statement; [241396]
(2) how many children on the Child Protection Register in each region have not been allocated a social worker since 9 September 2008; and if he will make a statement; [241397]
(3) how many children on the Child Protection Register in each London borough were not allocated a social worker in each year between 1997 and 3 August 2007; and if he will make a statement; [241398]
(4) how many children on the Child Protection Register in each London borough have not been allocated a social worker since 9 September 2008; and if he will make a statement; [241399]
(5) what the average number of cases allocated to each child protection social worker in each region was in each year between 1997 and 3 August 2007; and if he will make a statement; [241401]
(6) what the average number of cases allocated to each child protection social worker in each London borough was in each year between 1997 and 3 August 2007; and if he will make a statement; [241402]
(7) what the average number of cases allocated to each child protection social worker in each region has been since 9 September 2008; and if he will make a statement; [241403]
(8) what the average number of cases allocated to each child protection social worker in each London borough has been since 9 September 2008; and if he will make a statement. [241404]
Beverley Hughes: The Department does not collect this information. We recognise, however, the critical importance of effective frontline social work to outcomes for children. That is why the Government are investing nearly £73 million over the next three years in a package of proposals to improve social workers’ capacity and skills. As part of this package, we have just announced plans to establish a social work taskforce to lead a nuts and bolts review of frontline social work practice that will inform further improvements in social worker training, recruitment and leadership.
John Hemming: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families pursuant to his statement of 11 December 2008, Official Report, column 777, on serious case review numbers, when he expects to provide the information referred to. [247790]
Beverley Hughes: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families provided the information requested in a letter to the hon. Member on 3 February.
Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families (1) how many Part 8 reviews there have been into children’s deaths in Doncaster in each of the last 10 years; [248777]
(2) how many serious case reviews there have been of children’s deaths in Doncaster in each of the last 10 years. [248774]
Beverley Hughes:
Data currently held by the Department for Children, Schools and Families indicate that, of all notifications received between 1 April 2007 and 31 March 2008 of serious child care incidents, three serious case reviews had been initiated in Doncaster where a
child died and abuse or neglect was known or suspected to be a factor. Data prior to 1 April 2007 are not available in this form.
Information on the numbers of serious case reviews following the death of a child in each local authority area between 2000 and 2005 has been given in a previous parliamentary answer on 24 July 2006, Official Report, column 839W. This explains that the number of confirmed serious case reviews (SCRs) following the death of a child in Doncaster between 2000 and 2005 was six.
Children: Social Services
Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what proportion of initial assessments for children who may be at risk were carried out by care services within seven working days in the most recent year for which data is available. [247859]
Beverley Hughes: The percentage of initial assessments completed within seven working days of referral can be found in table 1A of the Statistical First Release ‘Referrals, Assessments and Children and Young People who are the subject of a Child Protection Plan, England—year ending 31 March 2008’ available at:
Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how much was spent on salaries for frontline children’s social workers by each local authority in each year since 1997. [258358]
Beverley Hughes: Social workers are directly recruited by their employers. The Department for Children, Schools and Families does not collect information on how much employers spend on salaries for frontline children’s social workers. In their Children’s, Young People’s and Families’ Social Care Pay and Workforce Survey 2007, the local government analysis and research group estimated that the basic salary for social workers in England and Wales (mean) was £28,389.
Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what the expenditure on the integrated children’s system was in each local authority area in each year since its implementation. [258554]
Beverley Hughes: Information on local authorities’ annual capital and revenue expenditure on the Integrated Children’s System is not collected centrally.
The Department has made £60 million in capital grant available to local authorities to support local capital expenditure on the development and implementation of the Integrated Children’s System between 1 April 2004 and 30 September 2008.
I have placed in the Library a table that shows local authorities’ allocations from this grant over that period.
Children's Services: Standards
Mr. Laws:
To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families in relation to which local authorities his Department has expressed concern
about the performance of the children's services department; what the areas of concern were in each case; and if he will make a statement. [257346]
Beverley Hughes: The local authorities that are of most concern to the Department are those whose children's services (or aspect(s) of) have been judged inadequate by Ofsted. These judgments can be found at:
Critical Thinking: Education
Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many pupils were entered for an AS level or higher examination in critical thinking in (a) maintained schools and (b) independent schools in each of the last five years. [257169]
Jim Knight [holding answer 23 February 2009]: The information requested is in the following table.
| Academic Year | Number of entries( 1) in A or AS level Critical Thinking in maintained schools( 2) | Number of entries(1) in A or AS- level Critical Thinking in independent schools |
| (1) Entries by 16-18 year olds (2) Figures for maintained schools do not include entries in further education colleges Source: Achievement and Attainment Tables | ||
Departmental Pay
Dr. Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many and what proportion of staff in his Department and its predecessor have received bonus payments in each of the last five years; what the total amount of bonuses paid was; what the largest single payment was in each year; and if he will make a statement. [258007]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The information requested for non-consolidated performance payments to staff is set out as follows:
| Staff | ||||
| Number | Percentage | Total cost (£ million) | Largest single payment (£) | |
| (1) Department for Education and Skills to 27 June 2007 and Department for Children, Schools and Families from 28 June 2007. | ||||
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