§ Mr. CryerTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what additional facilities will be provided for local authorities to ensure that the provisions of the Children Act and, in particular, those relating to guardians ad litem and childminder registration and inspection are implemented; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mrs. Virginia BottomleyThe Children Act will be implemented as a whole on 14 October 1991.
The cost of implementing the Act has been taken into account in the overall local authority settlement announced earlier this year. The personal social services standard spending figure for 1991–92 has been set at £4,502 million, an increase of 23.4 per cent. in cash terms over the equivalent figure for 1990–91, and some 10 per cent. higher than the local authority PSS budgets for 1990–91.
The first phase of the consultation exercise on the guidance and regulations required under the Act ended 341W recently. The consultation papers issued as part of this exercise will form the basis of a series of booklets of guidance which will be issued free of charge to all social services departments early next year.
A number of training projects have been commissioned by the Department; included among these is a project by the National Children's Bureau, who are producing training material for staff concerned with the registration and inspection of day care facilities. We expect to commission further projects next year, including material specifically aimed at guardians ad litem.