§ Dr. Godmanasked the Secretary of State for Social Services, pursuant to his answer, Official Report, column 28, 21 April, how many community psychiatric nurses are employed in England and Wales; how this figure compares with the figures for each of the past seven years; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. HayhoeI regret that I cannot give the hon. Member the information he seeks for the earlier years: prior to 1981 the occupation coding systems did not enable these staff to be identified. Figures for 30 September 1984 are the latest centrally available to this level of detail. Corresponding figures for Wales are also shown in the table:
Community psychiatric nursing staff Whole-time equivalents* At 30 September England Wales 1981 1,080 80 1982 1,240 80 1983 1,430 140 1984 1,880 140 Sources: DHSS Annual Census of Non-Medical Manpower; Welsh Office
*All figures rounded to nearest 10.
As regards the future, information so far available from regions' strategic plans suggests the number will more than double by 1994.