HC Deb 04 December 1996 vol 286 cc710-2W
Ms Lynne

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what plans he has to extend the advertising campaign for the Child Support Agency; what complaints were made to him about the accuracy of the advertisements for the test campaign in the Greater Manchester area; and if he will ensure that those claims in the advertisements against which complaints are upheld by the Advertising Standards Authority are not repeated. [7109]

Mr. Andrew Mitchell

This Department is currently in correspondence with the Advertising Standards Authority about one aspect of the Manchester publicity campaign. I regard the complaints made as wholly without foundation. There are no current plans to extend the advertising campaign to other areas.

Mr. Kevin Hughes

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security (1) what proposals his Department has to improve the efficiency of the Child Support Agency; [6603]

(2) what assessment he has made of the efficiency of the Child Support Agency. [6604]

Mr. Mitchell

The administration of the Child Support Agency is a matter for the chief executive, Miss Ann Chant. She will write to the hon. Member.

Letter from Ann Chant to Mr. Kevin Hughes, dated 3 December 1996: I am replying to your Parliamentary Question to the Secretary of State for Social Security about the efficiency of the Child Support Agency. Every year the Secretary of State for Social Security sets the Agency targets against which its performance and effectiveness can he measured. Negotiations over the 1997/98 targets are already well under way and once agreed by Ministers will be made public in the Agency Business Plan, published in March 1997. The Agency Business Plan for 1996/97 set out the main issues that would face the Agency in the year ahead. We were determined to continue the improvement in our performance by balancing our efforts across the full range of our business. It is worthwhile to note some recent achievements. The Agency recorded its best ever monthly performance in a number of areas in October 1996. £21.50 million in maintenance was collected; each Child Support Agency Centre collected in excess of £3 million in maintenance; 3,931 second tier reviews were cleared; 20,210 good cause cases were cleared. Achieving this year's key Secretary of State target of £380 million—£400 million of maintenance to be collected or arranged for direct payment between parents will entail an increase of 27%—33% on the collected/arranged figure required last year, but the Agency is on course to succeed. During the current financial year, the total amount of maintenance collected and arranged reached almost £217 million at 31st October. Payments of maintenance to parents with care (PWCs) made through the Agency collection service have increased significantly. Already this year, £48.6 million has been paid. Payments received are passed on very quickly; at the end of 1995/96, 97% of payments had been made within 10 working days of receipt from the absent parent (AP), exceeding the target of 90%. The 1996/97 target is to make 95% of payments within 10 working days. The target continues to be exceeded this year, with 98% of payments in October being made within 10 days. The Agency is also contributing fully to the Department of Social Security Change Programme. We are committed to achieve 25% efficiency savings over the next 3 years and to help us do this we will take full advantage of the relevant experience and skills of the private sector. I believe the progress made so far will be sustained throughout the rest of the year and look forward to continued improvements in performance across all areas of our business. I hope this is helpful.

Mr. Hughes

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many cases being dealt with by the Child Support Agency are currently undergoing a review of the maintenance assessment made in the case. [6605]

Mr. Mitchell

The administration of the Child Support Agency is a matter for the chief executive, Miss Ann Chant. She will write to the hon. Member.

Letter from Ann Chant to Mr. Kevin Hughes, dated 3 December 1996: I am replying to your Parliamentary Question to the Secretary of State for Social Security about Child Support Agency reviews. An important part of the Agency's day-to-day business is dealing with requests from our clients to review their current maintenance assessment. This can take the form of a request that another Child Support Officer looks at their assessment (a Second tier review), an appeal against the final decision reached by the Child Support Officer, or simply where a client reports that their circumstances have changed. At the 31st October 1996, the number of cases being dealt with by the Agency where such reviews had been requested were as follows: Second tier reviews: 8,744 cases Appeals: 1,553 cases Change of circumstance reviews: 14,277 cases In dealing with each of these categories, I am pleased to be able to tell you that the performance of the Agency is improving, against the background of an increasing caseload. The work-on-hand total for Second tier reviews has fallen by 22 per cent. from an April 1996 figure of 11,243, and the figure for appeals has fallen by 20 per cent. In the same period, the change of circumstance work-on-hand figure has fallen by almost 10%. This is indicative of the priority which is attached to these important areas of the Agency's work. I hope this is helpful.

Mr. Hughes

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many people who contracted the Child Support Agency in the last(a) six and (b) 12 months waited more than 10 working days to receive a reply from the Child Support Agency to their correspondence. [6606]

Mr. Mitchell

The administration of the Child Support Agency is a matter for the chief executive, Miss Ann Chant. She will write to the hon. Member.

Letter from Ann Chant to Mr. Kevin Hughes, dated 3 December 1996: I am replying to your Parliamentary Question to the Secretary of State for Social Security about Child Support Agency correspondence. Under the terms of the Agency's Charter, we aim to reply to general enquiries within ten working days. We also aim to acknowledge written complaints within two working days, and to issue a full reply within ten working days. In the case of general enquiries, total numbers are not recorded, and we measure our achievement using a sample of the correspondence received. In the period from May 1996 to October 1996, just over 40% of enquiries were answered within ten working days. In the twelve months up to 31st October 1996, the figure was 42%. We do collate data on the number of complaints handled. Between May and October 1996, the Agency received 12,376 written complaints; of these, 5,098 did not receive a full response within ten working days. The corresponding figures for the last twelve months were 25,557 and 12,126. The time taken to respond to written complaints is improving. In November 1995, 40% of complaints received a full response within ten working days; this figure had risen to 60% in October 1996. In addition, around 90% of complaints are acknowledged within two working days. It is worth noting that not all correspondence received by the Agency from clients requires a written response; it is often the case that letters are received which report changes in circumstances or request action to be taken. Where this occurs, the Agency takes whatever action is appropriate and no written response is necessary. I hope this is helpful.

Mr. Hughes

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many maintenance assessments made by the Child Support Agency are initially incorrectly assessed. [6600]

Mr. Mitchell

The administration of the Child Support Agency is a matter for the chief executive, Miss Ann Chant. She will write to the hon. Member.

Letter from Ann Chant to Mr. Kevin Hughes, dated 3 December 1996: I am replying to your Parliamentary Question to the Secretary of State for Social Security about the accuracy of Child Support Agency maintenance assessments. Information is not collected in such a way to enable me to give you precisely the information that you have requested. However, I am able to tell you that, based on a sample of cases, the Agency assessment accuracy rate for October 1996 was 77 per cent. The Agency remains on course to meet the Secretary of State target of achieving a continuing improvement so that in at least 85 per cent. of cases checked in March 1997 the assessment value will be for the correct amount, to the last penny. I hope this is helpful.