HC Deb 19 July 2000 vol 354 cc238-9W
Mr. Gareth R. Thomas

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of local councils' plans to improve children's services; and if he will make a statement. [131790]

Mr. Hutton

I have today placed in the Library a copy of the report "Tracking Progress in Children's Services: An Evaluation of Local Responses to the Quality Protects Programme Year 2".

When we launched the Quality Protects programme in September 1998, we required local authorities to submit annual Management Action Plans to show how they were intending to improve the management and delivery of children's social services. This report presents the key messages and findings from the second round of Management Actions Plans (MAPs) which were received in January 2000.

Councils have made a good start over the past year in implementing the Quality Protects programme. For example we have seen: more corporate working across councils and more partnership working with voluntary organisations an increase in the proportion of children looked after in foster care or placed for adoption a reduction in re-registrations on the child protection register more support being given to care leavers an increase in education support being given to looked after children more councils listening to children and young people in their care improvements in the collecting and using of management information.

But if there are to be real and lasting gains for children, these early improvements must be built on and further substantial progress made in 2000–01. The Government's determination to support this change is demonstrated by the significant increase in special grant available for funding this year (from £75 million to £120 million). We will expect progress in 2000–01 to be commensurate with this increase in funding.