§ Mr. Bowen Wellsasked the Secretary of State for Social Services what Government regulations there are on the opening and operation of private residential care homes; and whether the Government carry out regular inspections of the homes.
§ Mr. WhitneyI refer my hon. Friend to my reply to my hon. Friend the Member for Leicester. East (Mr. Bruinvels) on 16 December 1985 at column80.
§ Mr. Bowen Wellsasked the Secretary of State for Social Services what is the amount given to National Health Service residential care homes for the mentally handicapped; and what it was in 1984 and 1985.
§ Mr. WhitneyThe term "residential care home'' is defined in the Registered Homes Act 1984 in connection with private and voluntary sector homes and not used for National Health Service provision. We are planning, for 1985–86, for the first time to collect and analyse information on expenditure in respect of small National Health Service units in the community for mentally handicapped people. Information on the allocation of funds to these units is not available centrally.
§ Mr. Bowen Wellsasked the Secretary of State for Social Services what are the qualifications necessary to work in a National Health Service residential care home; what they are to work in a private home; why the qualifications differ; and whether the Government have any intention of changing this.
§ Mr. WhitneyNo specific qualifications are laid down centrally for the staff of residential homes, which are either operated by local authorities (not by the National Health Service) or are privately owned and registered with local authorities. It is for local authorities to decide what qualifications or experience they require of their own staff and whether the staff of homes registered with them are suitably qualified and competent. In a circular, LAC (86) 6, about to be issued, local authorities are reminded that they should be broadly consistent about standards across the public and private sectors and should not expect higher standards in registered homes than they have in their own homes. A copy of the circular will be placed in the Library.
§ Mr. Bowen Wellsasked the Secretary of State for Social Services what is the increase of residential places provided by local authorities since 1981 for the elderly, the mentally ill and the handicapped.
§ Mr. WhitneyThe increase in residential places provided by local authorities between 31 March 1981 and 31 March 1985, the latest date for which provisional figures are available, is shown in the table.
569W
Places in Local Authorities Homes in England at 31 March 1981 at 31 March 1985 (provisional) Elderly/disabled people 114,921 116,100 Mentally handicapped people 12,712 15,200 Mentally ill people 3,981 4,400
§ Mr. Bowen Wellsasked the Secretary of State for Social Services what are the Government's reasons for giving board and lodging benefits to those in private residential care homes.
§ Mr. NewtonSupplementary benefit is paid to people without enough resources to meet their requirements as specified in regulations. The regulations define the requirements of people in homes as equivalent to the charge they have to pay, subject to maximum limits which are related to the types of care which the home is registered to provide.
§ Mr. Bowen Wellsasked the Secretary of State for Social Services what changes have been made in benefits to those in private residential care homes since 1979.
§ Mr. NewtonThe history is given in the introduction to the report of the joint working party on supplementary benefit and residential care, publication of which I announced in my reply to my hon. Friend the Member for Mid-Kent (Mr. Rowe) on 28 January at column501. A copy of the report is in the Library.
§ Mr. Bowen Wellsasked the Secretary of State for Social Services what is the current waiting period for someone seeking admission into National Health Service homes for the elderly and into National Health Service homes for the mentally ill in Hertfordshire.
§ Mr. WhitneyI am sorry I cannot give my hon. Friend the information he seeks in precisely the form requested. Information available centrally concerns the numbers of persons awaiting admission to consultant departments of NHS hospitals and is given in the table.
Number of cases* on in-patient waiting list for selected specialties—NHS hospitals in Hertfordshire at 30 September 1985 (provisional) Specialty All cases Cases on list for more than one year Geriatrics 33 — Mental illness 22 16 Psychogeriatrics 7 — * None of these cases was reported as urgent.
§ Mr. Bowen Wellsasked the Secretary of State for Social Services what amount of money has been given in supplementary benefit to people receiving care in private homes for the elderly, the mentally ill and the handicapped; and what was the increase from 1984 and 1985.
§ Mr. NewtonIn 1983 the amount paid in supplementary benefit to people in all private voluntary residential care and nursing homes was £102 million. The estimated figure for 1984 is £190 million. No figures are yet available for 1985. It is not possible to break down the figures by all the client groups requested, or to distinguish between private and voluntary homes.