HC Deb 24 January 1991 vol 184 cc291-3W
Mr. Hinchliffe

To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list his estimate of the number of local authority care home trusts; and in which local authorities they are located.

Mrs. Virginia Bottomley

This information is not collected centrally.

Mr. Hinchliffe

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps his Department is taking to encourage the development of short-term respite care in both the local authority and the private sectors to avoid permanent admissions to care homes.

Mrs. Virginia Bottomley

The Government's White Paper "Caring for People" makes it clear that respite care has an important part to play in supporting carers and enabling dependent people to continue living in the community. The White Paper also asks local authorities to promote the involvement of and make maximum use of the non-statutory sector in improving community care.

The Department has awarded a grant to the National Association of Family Based Respite Care and has funded research at Bristol university about respite care for families with children with a mental handicap.

The report "Care for a Change", produced by the Department's social services inspectorate and published in 1987, a copy of which is available in the Library, gives guidance to local authorities on the provision of respite care.

Mr. Hinchliffe

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what guidance is issued to registration authorities regarding arrangements that may be made by private care and nursing homes for insurance cover for contents, liability, and loss of revenue.

Mrs. Virginia Bottomley

None. These are matters for the organisations concerned.

Mr. Hinchliffe

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what evaluation he has made of the implications of the growth in private care homes for the type of resident now accommodated in local authority part III accommodation.

Mrs. Virginia Bottomley

It is the Government's policy, set out in the White Paper "Caring for People", to encourage the contribution the independent sector can make in providing residential care for vulnerable people, in order to increase the choice for individuals and promote competition among providers. It is for individual local authorities in drawing up their community care plans to identify the range of services required to meet their population's community care needs, assemble information about current and prospective demand and supply of services in their locality, and secure a supply of appropriate services.

Mr. Hinchliffe

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what is his current estimate of the capital investment needed by local authorities to bring the structural standards of local authority residential care homes up to the level required by his Department.

Mrs. Virginia Bottomley

It is for local authorities to determine their capital needs for personal social services. The assessment of the need for structural work to be carried out in local authoritty residential care homes depends upon a number of factors, including the condition and suitability of the premises in the light of the standards they apply, as registration authorities, to independent homes, the extent to which they need to retain their own homes, and the availability of resources. Only local authorities themselves can carry out such an assessment.

Mr. Hinchliffe

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what guidance has been issued to local authorities with regard to the criteria which may be applied to the size of private care homes when contracts for the provision for care are being placed.

Mrs. Virginia Bottomley

It is for local social services authorities and health authorities, which are the registration authorities for independent homes, to judge whether a home is of an acceptable size, in the light of such factors as the premises, staffing levels, the level of care required for residents and the quality of life offered.

Guidance has been issued to local authorities about the size of new local authority residential care homes. The code of practice for residential care, "Home Life," a copy of which is available in the Library, advises that the size of the building and the proposed number of residents should be considered in the context of the stated aims of the home. We would expect local authorities to have regard to this guidance when arranging contracts with private care homes.

Mr. Hinchliffe

To ask the Secretary of State for Health if a local authority's statutory responsibilities for residents in local authority care home trusts differ in any way from their responsibilities for residents in local authority part III accommodation.

Mrs. Virginia Bottomley

Local authorities have a statutory duty to provide residential accommodation for persons who, by reason of age, infirmity or any other circumstances, are in need of care and attention which is not otherwise available to them. This duty can be exercised by social services authorities either by providing the individual with accommodation in a local authority residential care home or by sponsoring them in an independent sector residential care home.

Mr. Hinchliffe

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps are being taken by his Department to develop alternatives to the institutional model of care for elderly or disabled people.

Mr. Dorrell

We are firmly committed to a policy of community care which enables elderly and disabled people, with appropriate support, to live in their own homes or in small homely settings in the community for as long as this is feasible and sensible.

The White Paper "Caring for People" made clear that health and local authorities are expected to work closely together in preparing community care plans that are compatible and comprehensive. Following the passage of the National Health Service and Community Care Act 1990, the Department issued guidance to assist authorities in this task and to develop good practice. We have continued to stress the key role of the voluntary sector in this process and the importance of ensuring that the wishes of the elderly or disabled person are taken carefully into account.