§ Mr. Dewarasked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he is satisfied with the progress towards meeting the SHAPE priorities laid down in 1980 with regard to the support of mentally handicapped patients in the community; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. RifkindThe report on the SHAPE priorities (Scottish Health Authorities Priorities for the Eighties) was addressed primarily to the authorities responsible for the health services in Scotland, whereas the responsibility for providing facilities for the support of the mentally handicapped in the community rests mainly with local authorities. So far as increasing the provision in the community for this group is concerned, there has been substantial progress in the 'period from March 1979 to March 1985 and various supported accommodation and day care facilities have been established, including 350 units of special needs housing provided by housing associations, an increase of 377 places in staffed homes provided by local authorities and voluntary bodies and the provision of some 300 places in unregistered homes provided by voluntary bodies. Day centre provision for the mentally handicapped has increased by some 2,190 places in the same period. It is for local authorities to determine whether still greater priority should he given to further developments in their own areas in relation to the services for which they are responsible.
§ Mr. Dewarasked the Secretary of State for Scotland how many in-patients there are in Lennox castle hospital, the Royal Scottish national hospital and in other National Health Service hospitals in Scotland as a consequence of mental handicap at the latest convenient date; and what were the comparable figures five and 10 years ago.
§ Mr. RifkindThis information is as follows:
mentally handicapped in local authority or registered group homes. There were in addition some 370 places for the mentally ill and 310 for the mentally handicapped group homes and other premises known to local authorities where the amount of social work involvement was not considered sufficient to require registration.
§ Mr. Dewarasked the Secretary of State for Scotland what recent studies have been done at Lennox castle hospital and the Royal Scottish national hospital to establish if there are any in-patients who on the Wessex scale of competence would be able to respond to training 527W programmes designed to allow their discharge to a group home or hostel; and if he will make a statement on the results.
§ Mr. RifkindSurveys of all in-patients using the Wessex scale of competence were carried out in Lennox castle hospital in December 1984 and in the Royal Scottish national hospital in February 1984. These showed that 10 per cent. of the patients in Lennox castle hospital and 36 per cent. of the patients at the Royal Scottish national hospital had the basic skills to enable them to live independently. I have indicated in a separate reply to the hon. Member that progress has been made in providing facilities in the community to enable mentally handicapped persons who are capable of doing so to live independently.
§ Mr. Dewarasked the Secretary of State for Scotland what has been spent in each health board area by the boards and local authority on jointly planned and financed projects to create community facilities to support mentally ill and mentally handicapped patients in each of the last five years.
§ Mr. RifkindThis information is not available centrally.