§ Mr. SternTo ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on the extent to which his Department independently verifies the need to place a 523W particular child on an at-risk register, and the extent to which it verifies compliance with departmental guidelines on such placement.
§ Mrs. Virginia BottomleyThe Department does not seek verification of this kind. Local agencies, are responsible for the decisions in individual cases and are expected to follow departmental guidance within the established legal framework. The social services inspectorate looks at local child protection services procedures and practices as part of its inspection work and produces reports of its findings.
§ Mr. SternTo ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will publish in theOfficial Report a table showing the numbers of children registered as being at risk in each relevant local authority in England, showing the figures both as numbers of cases and as a percentage of the population of the local authority.
§ Mrs. Virginia BottomleyThe number of children on child protection registers is published in "Children and Young Persons on Child Protection Registers: Year ending 31 March". The publication also shows the numbers on the register as a rate per 1,000 population under 18. The most recent publication is for 1989 and a copy is available in the Library. Figures for 1990 will be available shortly.