HC Deb 05 March 1990 vol 168 cc427-9W
Mr. Tony Lloyd

To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many(a) private, (b) employer, (c) local authority and (d) other means-funded child care places there are in each travel-to-work area for each of the past 10 years.

Mrs. Virginia Bottomley

This information is not available centrally in the form requested. The information collected centrally about day care places in England is published in "Children's Day Care Facilities at 31 March" and is available in the Library.

Ms. Harman

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what action he has taken, and what action he intends taking, to implement the recommendations within his area of responsibility of the European Commission's childcare network report: "Caring for Children—Services and Policies for Childcare and Equal Opportunities in the United Kingdom."

Mrs. Virginia Bottomley

This is one of several recent reports that have informed our current thinking. We are considering the child care aspects as part of our integrated policy for the implementation of the Children Act in 1991.

Mr. David Porter

To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will set out a table showing from 1979 to the latest available year (i) each district health authority in East Anglia regional health authority and (ii) average of all English district health authorities(a) what services have been put out to competitive tender, (b) what savings have been made thereby in real terms and (c) what estimated real cost terms per head of population column (b) represents.

Mr. Freeman

Comprehensive information on all services put out to tender is not held centrally in the form requested. Since 1983, health authorities have been required to tender domestic, catering and laundry services and apart from some catering services at East and West Suffolk, all of these services in the region have now been subjected to this process.

Information on savings arising from the tendering of these services in the financial years 1986–87 is set out in the table in the form requested. Information on the remaining years requested is not held centrally.

Ms. Harman

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what child care provision his Department provides for pre-school age children of employees; what child care provision for school holidays or after-school care is provided for employees' children aged five years or over; what plans there are for increasing provision in the next five years; and how these are to be funded.

Mr. Freeman

The Department runs holidy play schemes for employees' children aged between five and 11 years and plans to continue doing so. No nursery facilities or after-school care are at present provided for parents employed in the Department. However, we are undertaking a feasibility study into the provision of nursery facilities and we are contributing to a study into interdepartmental provision being co-ordinated by the Office of the Minister for the Civil Service. The holiday play schemes are financed by parental and departmental contributions, and it is likely that any other child care provision would be financed in a similar way.

Ms. Harman

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what grade is his Department's equal opportunities officer.

Mr. Freeman

The equal opportunities officer for the Department of Health is a grade five.

Ms. Harman

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what measures he has implemented to ensure that recruitment and promotion policy in his Department does not directly or indirectly discriminate against applicants who were mature students or women returning to work following a career break due to child care.

Mr. Freeman

This Department is an equal opportunities employer and its equal opportunities policy forbids discrimination on the grounds of sex or ethnic origin. Members of recruitment and promotion boards have this policy brought to their attention on each occasion that they undertake these duties. Wherever possible recruitment and promotion boards have female members.

The Department has, as an aid to recruitment and retention, introduced a number of flexible working patterns. These include part-time working, job sharing, flexible working hours and career breaks together with a scheme for keeping in touch with existing employees away from the Department. More flexibilities are under active consideration.

Ms. Harman

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what proportion of civil servants in his Department are women at each of grades seven, six, five, four, three, two and one.

Mr. Freeman

In the Department of Health as at February 1990, 11.1 per cent. of civil servants at grade two, 16.7 per cent. at grade three, 31.5 per cent. at grade four, 29.9 per cent. at grade five, 24.1 per cent. at grade six, and 25.1 per cent. at grade seven are women. There are no female officers at grade one level.