Ms. Harman askedthe Secretary of State for Social Services (1) if he intends to visit the Bettman centre for assessment by disabled people of equipment and gadgets in Coventry;
(2) if he will make it his policy that every local authority personal social services department should set up a centre where disabled people can assess gadgets, equipment and home aids with the assistance of occupational therapists;
(3) what information he has about which local authorities provide centres for disabled people to try out gadgets, aids and equipment with the assistance of occupational therapists.
§ Mr. NewtonI have no plans at present to visit the Bettman centre. I consider that both aid centres and assessment centres can be a valuable addition to services for disabled people and I hope that this new centre proves to be so.
It is of course for individual local authorities to decide whether to set up such centres, taking account of local circumstances, and we do not have comprehensive information about their arrangements. However, we are aware that a number of authorities, either alone or in association with health authorities and/or voluntary bodies, have set up or contribute towards the cost of running aid centres where a selection of aids can be seen and tried out by disabled people under the supervision of trained staff. There are 14 such centres in the United Kingdom offering a fully comprehensive service; these are situated in Belfast, Birmingham, Caerphilly, Edinburgh, Leeds, Leicester, Liverpool, London, Manchester, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Sheffield, Southampton, Stockport and Swindon.
A more limited service is offered in Blackpool, Dudley, Portsmouth and Wakefield. Other places where aids can be seen and tried out include some social services departments some of which have assessment centres similar to the Bettman centre; and hospital occupational therapy departments some of which have arrangements for use also by local authority staff.
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