Mr. Wm. Rossasked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what were the total sums allocated to community services in Northern Ireland in 1974–75, 1975–76, 1976–77 and 1977–78; what were the sums spent on the salaries of community service officers from Government funds and local government funds, respectively, and on resource centres, and on community centres and voluntary groups; and how much of the total allocation was unspent in each year.
§ Mr. CarterThe total sums spent by the Northern Ireland Department of Education, the former Northern Ireland Department of Community Relations and the Northern Ireland Community Relations Commission were £76,468 in 1974–75 and £133,156 in 1975–76. As, prior to 1st April 1976, allocations to community services were not identified separately, information in the form requested for these two years could not be obtained without disproportionate cost. Since 1st April 1976 block allocations have been made to cover expenditure by district councils on community services, and the information requested is as follows: 535W
536W537W
Year Sums allocated Salaries of Community Service Officers Running costs of Community Centres Expenditure Running costs of Resource Centres Grants to Voluntary Groups Total Unspent £ £ £ £ £ £ £ 1976–77 … … 620,477 By District Councils … … 20,343 32,851 18,807 5,988 385,916 234,561 By Department of Education … 61,029 98,555 56,423 91,920 1977–78 … … 808,579 By District Councils … … 18,017 30,494 11,593 5,663 304,696 503,883 By Department of Education … 54,051 91,483 34,781 58,614 (to 30.11.77) (at 30.11.77) Note: The sums shown as expended by district councils are the total claims submitted to the Department of Education and paid during each financial year. In addition, the Northern Ireland health and social services boards paid £10,000 in 1974–75; £11,000 in 1975–76 and £12,880 in 1976–77 to community groups. No estimate is available for the 1977–78 financial year.