§ Mr. HinchliffeTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what account is taken of the establishment of local authority care home trusts in the calculation of social services departments' standard spending assessments.
§ Mr. KeyThe standard spending assessment (SSA) for social services for the elderly includes as an indicator the proportion of elderly people in each social services authority resident in an independent, registered home. An increase in this proportion reduces an authority's SSA. This is because residents of independent homes do not receive financial assistance from local authorities. Where a care home trust is established the number of residents will be included in the independent homes indicator.