§ Mr. Carter-Jonesasked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will give details of the last three formal complaints regarding the provision or repair of wheelchairs to be made at each of the appliance centres at Kingston, Exeter and Nottingham.
§ Mr. NewtonThe details are as follows:
one and 14 days to deliver following receipt of form AOF 5G, and of the number which took 15 to 28 days, 29 to 42 days and over 42 days.
§ Mr. NewtonThe following table gives the available information for the last week in April in each of the past three years: 187W
Centre 1–14 days 15–28 days 29–42 days over 42 days 1981 1982 1983 1981 1982 1983 1981 1982 1983 1981 1982 1983 Birmingham — 202 219 — 25 9 — 6 3 — 4 4 Brighton — 90 52 — 10 2 — 0 0 — 0 2 Bristol — 71 71 — 9 6 — 1 7 — 1 1 Cambridge — 164 163 — 24 16 — 3 6 — 3 2 Cleveland — 50 86 — 6 2 — 2 0 — 1 1 Exeter — 64 75 — 8 0 — 2 0 — 6 2 Gillingham — 69 62 — 10 3 — 2 0 — 0 0 Harold Wood — 52 76 — 20 5 — 6 0 — 2 1 Kingston — 101 71 — 38 25 — 14 2 — 9 3 Leeds — 56 27 — 24 4 — 1 3 — 4 5 Liverpool — 35 66 — 42 13 — 11 2 — 5 3 Manchester — 131 110 — 43 6 — 4 3 — 1 0 Newcastle — 91 90 — 8 6 — 3 4 — 0 1 Nottingham — 167 111 — 59 6 — 9 0 — 0 0 Oxford — — 119 — — 4 — — 1 — — 1 Portsmouth — 79 61 — 9 2 — 3 0 — 2 0 Preston — 28 68 — 2 3 — 3 1 — 0 0 Sheffield — 120 105 — 5 9 — 3 1 — 2 1 Total 1,178 1,570 1,632 451 342 121 70 73 33 72 40 27 Note:
Subcentre figures included in those for parent centre. Figures for individual centres not available in 1981. Figures for Oxford not available in 1982.
§ Mr. Carter-Jonesasked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will give details of any penalties which companies supplying wheelchairs may incur for the late delivery of ordered items.
§ Mr. NewtonA penalty is usually imposed for the late delivery of wheelchairs specially modified to meet individual requirements. This amounts to 1 per cent. of the price for each working day beyond a negotiated delivery date, except for one model where it is 2.5 per cent. for each week overdue up to a maximum of 10 per cent.
§ Mr. Carter-Jonesasked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will give details of how many contractors under separate ownership supply the wheelchair service, the percentage of chairs each supplies, how much they were paid in 1982–83 and the basis for payment.
§ Mr. NewtonIn 1982–83 two manufacturers under separate ownership each supplied roughly a third of the wheelchairs purchased by the Department. The remainder were supplied by eight further manufacturers. Other equipment for the wheelchair service was brought from 80 suppliers. The firms were paid some £4.0 million for wheelchairs, £2.0 million for accessories, and £4.3 million for spares. This does not include repairs, reconditioning or transport. The price for wheelchairs made to departmental specifications was based on competitive tender; that for proprietary chairs was negotiated.
§ Mr. Carter-Jonesasked the Secretary of State for Social Services in what proportion of cases in which wheelchairs are supplied by his Department it is necessary for clients to visit an artificial limb and appliance centre or subcentre or an appliance centre or subcentre.
§ Mr. NewtonPatients are always medically examined at a centre before receiving powered wheelchairs, which constitute some 7 per cent. of those issued annually. Patients issued with a non-powered wheelchair are examined at a centre only when there are special problems. This happens in about 6 per cent. of cases.