§ Mr. BercowTo ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on the Public Service Agreement target to improve the educational attainment of children looked after by local authorities by increasing to at least 50 per cent. by 2001 the proportion of children leaving care aged 16 or above with a GCSE or GNVQ qualification. [14948]
§ Jacqui SmithData published by the Department on 19 October 2001 showed that in year ending 31 March 2001, 37 per cent. of the 6,500 young people leaving care at age 16-plus obtained one or more GCSEs or GNVQs. This compares with 30 per cent. of care leavers in the previous year. Thirty local councils reported meeting the 50 per cent. target compared to 15 in the previous year.
The attainment figures for year ending 31 March 2001 are based on examinations sat in summer 2000 and earlier, therefore preceding many of the important Government initiatives now under way to improve attainment.
§ Mr. BercowTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what the Public Service Agreement target is for 2001–02 for the proportion of children in local authority care to have three or more placements in one year. [14913]
572W
§ Jacqui SmithThe public service agreement target set following the comprehensive spending review in 1998 was
Improve the continuity of care given to children looked after by local authorities by reducing to no more than 16 per cent. in all authorities the proportion of such children who have three or more placements in one year by March 2001.This target has been rolled forward to March 2002 thus enabling those authorities that have already met the target to continue to demonstrate their good practice and to provide those which have yet to meet it a further opportunity to achieve the standard required.
§ Mr. BercowTo ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on progress towards meeting the Public Service Agreement target of a reduction in the death rate from accidents by at least 20 per cent. by 2010. [14888]
§ Ms BlearsLatest available data (for the three years 1998–2000) show virtually no movement in the national death rate from unintentional injury. The target was announced in the saving lives White Paper published in July 1999, so we would not yet expect to see significant progress reflected in the information currently available.
§ Mr. BercowTo ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on progress in meeting the Public Service Agreement target for reducing the national average emergency psychiatric re-admission rate by two per cent. by 2002. [14914]
§ Jacqui SmithAssessment of progress is set out in the table. It shows the number of emergency psychiatric re-admissions of patients aged 16–64 within 90 days of all discharges from the care of a psychiatric specialist as a percentage of such discharges.
1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 Number of re-admissions within 90 days 15,461 14,875 14,068 Total number of discharges 113,585 114,616 110,312 Re-admission rate (percentage) 113.6 113.0 112.8 Progress is being made, and the national milestone as stated in the mental health national service framework to reduce the rate of psychiatric emergency readmissions by April 2002, from 14.3 per cent. to 12.3 per cent. is on target to being achieved.
§ Mr. BercowTo ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on progress in meeting the Public Service Agreement target of reducing the per capita rate of growth in emergency admissions of people aged over 75 years to an annual average of two per cent. up to 2002–03. [14915]
§ Ms BlearsThe rates of growth nationally of emergency admissions of people aged 75 and over since 1998–99 are:
- 1998–99 to 1999–2000: 0.62 per cent.
- 1999–2000 to 2000–01: 0.01 per cent.
- 2000–01 to 2001–02 (forecast): 0.30 per cent.
All are within the present two per cent. growth target.
§ Mr. BercowTo ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on success in meeting the Public Service Agreement target of reducing to no more 573W than 16 per cent. the proportion of children in local authority care who had three or more placements in one year by 2001. [14921]
§ Jacqui SmithProvisional data for the year ending 31 March 2001 indicate that 78 per cent. of local councils in England met the target of having no more than 16 per cent. of their looked after children having three or more placements in the year.
The equivalent percentage of local councils who met this target in 1999–2000 and in 1998–99 was 53 per cent. and 39 per cent. respectively.
§ Mr. BercowTo ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on progress towards meeting the Public Service Agreement target of a reduction in serious accidental injury relating to admission to hospital by at least 10 per cent. by 2010. [14887]
§ Ms BlearsLatest available data (1998–99) show virtually no movement in serious accidental injury relating to hospital admission. The target was announced in the saving lives White Paper published in July 1999, so we could not yet expect to see progress reflected in the information currently available.