§ Mr. BowisTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what(a) action has been taken and (b) further steps he will take in respect of the van der Eyken report on the under-fives initiatives.
§ Mrs. Virginia Bottomley[holding answer 18 June 1990]: The final report of the national monitoring survey of the under-fives initiative by Willem van der Eyken was sent out in 1988. Copies went to local authorities, health authorities and relevant voluntary organisations.
The Department grant-aids 10 national voluntary organisations active in the under-fives field, including the Pre-school Playgroups Association, National Childminding Association and Home Start Consultancy.
Under-fives groups benefit from centrally funded initiatives such as the small grants scheme, which builds on the one operated during the earlier initiative. They also received funding from the lone parents element of the retail prices index error scheme.
The new under-fives initiative was launched in September 1989. It takes forward some of the recommendations in Mr. van der Eyken's report. Twenty-one national and local voluntary organisations are managing 25 local projects. The projects are intended to help families in temporary accommodation; improve partnerships between local authorities and the voluntary sector; extend knowledge about impact of day care services on the circumstances of lone parents; and improve understanding about ways of supporting carers.
The Children Act will be implemented in October 1991. It introduces provisions for local authorities to regulate private and voluntary day care services and childminding, to have a general duty to provide day care services for children in need and a power to do so for other children. A duty is also placed on local social services and education departments to review and publish a report on day care services in their area. The Department is undertaking extensive consultation on draft guidance on these subjects.