§ Audrey WiseTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will list the extra child care provisions put in place since the launch of the plan for Parents at Work by the Benefits Agency in May 1998. [70171]
§ Angela EagleThe administration of the Benefits Agency is a matter for the Chief Executive, Peter Mathison. I will ask him to write to my hon. Friend.
Letter from Peter Mathison to Audrey Wise, dated 15 February 1999:
I am replying to your recent Parliamentary Question asking if I will list the extra childcare provisions put in place since the launch of the plan for Parents at Work by the Benefits Agency (BA) in May 1998.I am pleased to have the opportunity to give you an update on progress with our Nine Point Plan for Parents at Work. It may be helpful if I briefly outline the actions we have taken so far.Our main objective has been to set up a comprehensive network of Childcare Champion posts that have now been filled, with the last Champion taking up post in December last year. We know from the major review of childcare provision which we undertook in the BA in 1997 that there is a significant demand from staff for childcare but not enough holiday playschemes in operation.681WThe first task of the Childcare Champions is to establish the areas of greatest need for playschemes. Approximately thirty possible schemes have already been identified and we expect ten of these to be up and running by Summer 1999. East new scheme will receive initial funding of up to £3000. We aim to have a further forty schemes established by March 2001. The Childcare Champions will also consider whether any of the holiday playschemes can be extended to provide after-school clubs but we expect the scope for this to be fairly limited.Participation on management committees for the Early Years Development and Childcare Partnerships has been secured by some of the Childcare Champions. This will help the Agency play an active part in local childcare planning alongside Local Education Authorities and Training Enterprise Councils etc. We will also be looking to encourage other employers from the public, private and voluntary sector, to join us in partnership with the aim of improving childcare provision for all working parents in the community.As you will be aware, the Nine Point Plan also highlighted areas for improvement of the BA's Family Friendly policies. There has been considerable progress in this area with provision made to allow staff paid leave to sit on local Out of School Development Committees. A "Family Friendly" booklet has been produced and distributed to staff setting out the range of family friendly and childcare policies available.To ensure that managers and staff fully understand the real business benefits of effective family friendly policies, a further booklet "The Business Benefits of Family Friendly Policies" with examples of good practice for all line managers has also been produced and distributed. Also an article entitled "Parents at Work" has been published in the Agencies "BA Newsletter" and seminars have been held country wide to launch the initiative positively and gain the understanding and support of managers at all levels.The Agency already has family friendly policies, providing 325 nursery and 1,350 holiday playscheme places for staff, which compares favourably with external organisations. Our commitment to full implementation of our Nine Point Plan will go even further towards helping all our staff balance more effectively their work and family lives.I hope you find this reply helpful.