§ Mr. Kilroy-Silkasked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will list the 23 local authorities which are running professional fostering schemes, the weekly payment made by each scheme to professional foster parents and the number of children that each scheme has in placement.
§ Sir George YoungSome further schemes have come to our attention since my reply of 11 December 1979 to the hon. Member for Hammersmith, North (Mr. Soley)—[Vol. 975, c.592.]—and we now know of professional or specialised fostering schemes in Avon, Bedfordshire, Berkshire, Birmingham, Bradford, Buckinghamshire, Cheshire, Coventry, Cum- 656W bria, Derbyshire, Devon, Dorset, Dyfed, East Sussex, Essex, Hertfordshire, Humberside, Isle of Wight, Kent, Lambeth, Lewisham, Manchester, Norfolk, North Yorkshire, Oxfordshire, Salop, Somerset, Staffordshire, Tameside, Trafford, Wakefield, Wandsworth, West Glamorgan, and Wirral. In addition, most local authorities pay enhanced boarding out allowances for children with special needs. Records are not kept centrally of the weekly payments made or of the number of children placed under these schemes.