HC Deb 12 December 1991 vol 200 cc483-4W
Mr. Thurnham

To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list the pilot sites selected for the national disability information project, the project team selected to manage the project, and the membership of the steering group.

Mrs. Virginia Bottomley

Since the announcement of the national disability information project on 25 March 1991,Official Report, Volume 188, column 325, there has been considerable public interest in the project.

During June and July, applications were sought from groups of local disability information providers to become pilot sites for the project, to develop ways of improving information services to people with disabilities, their carers and service providers. Over 600 application packs were sent out, and 101 applications returned. The standard of applications was very high. The following 12 sites have been selected as representative of a range of approaches to developing information services and will take this work forward over the next three years:

  • Berkshire Disability Information Group
  • Birmingham Information Federation
  • Devon Disablement Information and Advice Federation
  • East Yorkshire Information Service
  • Gateshead Disability Information Project
  • Gloucestershire—GUIDE
  • Kent Information Federation
  • Manchester Disability Information Service
  • Norfolk Disability Information Federation
  • Oldham Disability Alliance
  • The Southwark Disability Information Project
  • Walsall Information Federation

Tenders for the role of the project team to manage and co-ordinate the project were invited from nine organisa-tions and the Policy Studies Institute was selected to perform this function.

A steering group, chaired by the Department of Health, has also been set up to provide general oversight and direction to the project. The non-departmental members of the steering group are:

  • Dr. R. Blunden—Programme Director, Community Living Development Team, King's Fund Centre for Health Services Development.
  • Mr. J. Evans—Former Chair of the British Council of Organisations of Disabled People.
  • Mr. P. Ferns—Training Consultant, specialising in equality of opportunity.
  • Ms. S. Haffenden—Barking and Havering Family Health Services Authority, with project experience with Carers National Association.
  • Mr. M. Laverman—Director of Social Services, Cleveland.
  • Mrs. S. Richards—Chairman, College of Occupational Therapists.
  • Mrs. D. Twitchin—Director of Living Options in Practice.
  • Dr. T. Vincent, MBE—The Open University, Deputy Director and Head of the Centre for Information Technology in Education.