§ Mrs. FyfeTo ask the Secretary of State for Scotland (1) whether he has any plans to advise or assist regional councils to integrate pre-five services;
(2) whether he has any plans to encourage regional councils to expand (i) nursery education, (ii) day care nurseries, and (iii) childminding services;
(3) what assistance he will give to regional councils to enable them to target pre-five services to priority groups including handicapped children, children with language difficulties, and children living in low-income households;
(4) whether he will take steps to ensure that pre-five provision is more responsive to the needs of the community.
§ Mr. Michael ForsythOur current policy is to look to local authorities to determine the nature and scale of services for the pre-fives within their areas, in the light of the resources available to them and according to their own priorities.
§ Mrs. FyfeTo ask the Secretary of State for Scotland whether he has any plans to provide either capital allocation or capital grants to enable regional councils to improve provision of pre-five services.
§ Mr. Michael ForsythAllocations are made to regional and island authorities for capital expenditure on education and social work services. It is for authorities to decide what place improvement of provision for the pre-fives takes on their priorities for capital expenditure. Under the urban programme pre-fives projects in eligible areas may qualify for capital grants