§ Mr. DawsonTo ask the Secretary of State for Health how many children are awaiting adoption, broken down by age in years. [136854]
§ Mr. HuttonThe available information for the past five years to 1999 (latest year available) is given in the table.
76W
Estimated number of children looked after by local authorities who were placed for adoption at 31 March by age, England 1995–99 Year Age at 31 March 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 0 160 140 140 260 110 1 230 260 320 370 460
Estimated number of children looked after by local authorities who were placed for adoption at 31 March by age, England 1995–99 Year Age at 31 March 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2 240 250 300 350 430 3 190 240 280 250 350 4 180 220 260 260 350 5 190 180 220 270 270 6 190 170 190 200 240 7 180 150 150 130 190 8 140 150 140 130 130 9 120 120 120 90 100 10 100 90 90 70 70 11 70 70 70 30 40 12 80 60 40 30 30 13 30 50 40 10 20 14 20 20 30 10 1— 15 20 20 10 20 0 16 10 10 10 1— 30 17 1— 10 10 1— 1— All ages 2,200 2,200 2,400 2,400 2,900 1 Estimate less than five Notes:
1. Table excludes children looked after under a series of short-term placements
2. Columns may not add to totals due to rounding
§ Mr. DawsonTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he plans to improve the system of adoption. [136855]
§ Mr. HuttonWe are committed to ensuring the best use of adoption as an option to meet the needs of looked after children. My right hon. Friend the Prime Minister announced in February this year that we would conduct a thorough review of adoption services. As a first step towards this, we asked the Cabinet Office Performance and Innovation Unit to carry out a study of adoption practice during the summer to assess the evidence, explore the options for action and make recommendations to the Government. The Performance and Innovation Unit Report was published for consultation in July.
The Prime Minister has announced that we will publish a White Paper before the end of the year setting out our new approach to adoption, building on the review and the results of the consultation. The White Paper will include proposals for new legislation to be introduced next year. In the meantime we are taking forward a programme of work to improve adoption services, including setting up a National Adoption Register and drawing up new National Standards for adoption services. In addition, we have announced an adoption and permanence task force to spread best practice and improve local council performance.
We are also committed to improving intercountry adoption services and to putting in place effective measures to protect children. Regulations under the Adoption (Intercountry Aspects) Act 1999 are being prepared which will shortly be subject to a public consultation exercise. The Act enables the United Kingdom to ratify the 1983 Hague Convention on Protection of Children and Co-operation in Respect of Intercountry Adoption. We hope to be able to present the regulations to Parliament early next year.