HC Deb 20 April 1983 vol 41 cc118-9W
Mr. Alfred Morris

asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland (1) if he will list the number of households containing disabled children and the rate per 1,000 child population in each area board which received assistance with the provision of aids in 1981–82;

(2) if he will list the number of households and the rate per 1,000 population in each area board which received assistance with the provision of aids in 1981–82;

(3) if he will list the number of households containing disabled children and the rate per 1,000 child population in each area board which received assistance with adaptations to the home in 1981–82;

(4) if he will list the number of households and the rate per 1,000 population in each area board which received assistance with adaptations to the home in 1981–82;

(5) if he will list the number of households and the rate per 1,000 population in each area board which received assistance with the installation of telephones in 1981–82;

(6) if he will list the number of households containing disabled children and the rate per 1,000 child population in each area board which received assistance with the payment of telephone rentals in 1981–82;

(7) if he will list the number of households and the rate per 1,000 population in each area board which received assistance with the payment of telephone rentals in 1981–82;

(8) if he will list the number of households containing disabled children and the rate per 1,000 child population in each area board which received assistance with the installation of telephones in 1981–82.

Mr. John Patten

Since January 1981 statistics have been compiled on the basis of number of cases rather than households and relate to calendar years. Figures for 1982 are not yet available but for 1981 the information is as follows:

Assistance given by Health and Social Services boards' social services departments: Year ended 31 December 1981
Type of Assistance Health and Social Services board All Cases Cases of assistance involving* per-sons aged under 16
Number Rate per 1,000 population† Number Rate per l,000‡ population under 16
Provision of Personal Aids§ Eastern 4,654 7.47 ║225 1.47
Northern 2,729 7.36 91 0.86
Southern 1,135 4.26 76 0.97
Western 248 1.03 13 0.17
Northern Ireland 8,766 5.84 405 0.98
Adaptations to home¶ Eastern 699 1.12 1 0.01
Northern 391 1.06 18 0.17
Southern 167 0.63 8 0.10
Western 19 0.08 2 0.03
Northern Ireland 1,276 0.85 29 0.07
Assistance with installations of telephones Eastern 362 0.58
Northern 137 0.37
Southern 54 0.20
Western 109 0.45 1 0.01
Northern Ireland 662 0.44 1
Assistance with payments of telephone rentals Eastern 1,759 2.82
Northern 846 2.28 5 0.05
Southern 193 0.73
Western 620 2.57 17 0.23
Northern Ireland 3,418 2.28 22 0.05
* Where provision is shared, the age of the elder—eldest sharing the provision is recorded.
† and ‡Arising from difficulties during the taking of the 1981 census a number of households remained unenumerated. The figure used for total population in each area in the calculation of rate per 1,000 in the above table was the total of the enumerated population plus the estimate of the non-enumerated population; the figure used in calculating the rate for under 16-year-olds was the enumerated figure only.
§ The information relates only to personal aids supplied through the social services departments of health and social services boards. Information about aids provided by boards through the hospital and community nursing services is not available and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.
║║ The figure for one district has been estimated.
¶ in addition to these adaptations the Northern Ireland Housing Executive carried out 3,682 adaptations to its own dwellings to meet the needs of disabled people and made 173 improvement and intermediate grants for private sector dwellings for a similar purpose.