§ Mr. WigleyTo ask the Secretary of State for Wales what is the total number of children with disabilities in Wales according to(a) the severity of disability scale and (b) type of disability; and if he will also express the totals in terms of rates of disability per 1,000 children under the age of 16 years.
§ Mr. Nicholas BennettThe latest available information is from the 1985 OPCS surveys of disability in Great Britain. The estimated numbers of children in each disability category and the cumulative rates per thousand are shown in the following table.
Information for Wales by type of disability is not readily available.
Severity category Estimated numbers (thousands) Severity category Estimated cumulative rates (per thousand aged under 16) 10 1 10 3 9 5 9–10 11 8 1 8–10 14 7 2 7.10 18 6 2 6.10 20 5 1 5.10 23 4 2 4.10 26 3 1 3.10 28 2 0 2.10 28 1 2 1.10 31 Total 18 Note: The sample of children identified in the survey as having a disability was less than 100 and there is therefore a margin of error attached to these estimates.
§ Mr. WigleyTo ask the Secretary of State for Wales what is the total number of children with disabilities in communal establishments in Wales according to(a) disability severity scale and (b) the type of disability; and what is (i) the percentage of all children with disabilities in Wales who are currently living in communal establisments according to the disability severity scale and (ii) the percentage of children with disabilities within communal establishments who have particular types of disability.
§ Mr. Nicholas BennettThe latest available information is from the 1985 OPCS surveys of disability in Great Britain. The estimated numbers of children with disabilities in communal establishments are shown in the table.
882W
Estimated numbers of children in communal establishments Severity category Number 10 53 9 30 8 35
Severity category Number 7 49 6 45 5 38 4 9 3 10 2 0 1 0 Total 269 The sample of children in Wales identified in the survey as having a disability was too small to permit reliable estimates of the percentages by severity category of disabled children living in communal establishments.
Information for Wales by type of disability is not readily available.
§ Mr. MichaelTo ask the Secretary of State for Wales what arrangements have been made for access to proposed conductive education facilities in Birmingham for disabled children in Wales; what discussion has taken place with parents and professionals in Wales concerned about the progress and development of those children; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. Nicholas BennettI refer the hon. Gentleman to the reply given today by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Health.
§ Mr. MichaelTo ask the Secretary of State for Wales what assessment he has made of the number and ages of children who would benefit through the establishment of a centre for conductive education in the Principality.
§ Mr. Nicholas BennettIt is for the relevant statutory authorities to assess the needs of their local populations for services. For this purpose, information about conductive education will continue to be disseminated to them as it becomes available.
§ Mr. MichaelTo ask the Secretary of State for Wales (1) what assessment he has made(a) of the likely use that might be made by disabled children from Wales of the proposed conductive education project in Birmingham and (b) of whether Welsh requirements might be better met through separate facilities within the Principality;
(2) what assessment he has made of the benefits that could be achieved for disabled children in Wales through the establishment of a centre for conductive education in the Principality.
§ Mr. Nicholas BennettOn the question of the conductive education project in Birmingham, I refer the hon. Gentleman to the reply given today by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Health.
The Government believe that conductive education should be accessible in the United Kingdom as part of the range of available therapies. However, conductive education cannot exist without trained conductors. The Government have pledged £5 million over four years to the Peto Institute in Hungary for the building of a new international institute in order that training places will be made available for people from the United Kingdom. The Welsh Office is contributing its share towards this, and in due course trained conductors should become available for work in Wales. Meanwhile, the potential benefits offered by conductive education and other therapies are being kept under review.