§ Mr. HobanTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what framework is in place to assess the quality of local education authorities in areas other than those covered by Ofsted. [157069]
§ Mr. Miliband[holding answer 27 February 2004]: Ofsted is responsible, under section 38 of the Education Act 1997, for inspecting the main functions of local education authorities (LEAs) as they relate to schools. Provisions in the Children Bill would widen the scope of section 38 to cover any function of an LEA other than those falling within the remit of the Adult Learning Inspectorate (ALI).
1735WLocal authority social care functions are inspected by the Social Services Inspectorate (SSI), whose functions are shortly to transfer to the newly established Commission for Social Care Inspection (CSCI). The Children Bill provides for the integrated inspection of children's services in local authority areas, with all relevant inspectorates working under a framework which will cover all local authority services for children, as well as other non-Council services such as health and probation.