§ Vernon CoakerTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what progress has been made on implementing the recommendations of the social exclusion report on young people. [9300]
§ Mr. DenhamThe recommendations of the Social Exclusion Unit's Policy Action Team (12) report on Young People centred around four themes; improving the way Government develop and implement policy and services for children and young people; a new focus on preventive services; improving individual services for children and young people; and designing policies around their needs, especially through involving children and young people in thinking about policies and services. Substantial progress has been made in all these areas.
To improve the way the Government develop policy the Prime Minister has established a new cabinet committee on children and young people's services, created the interdepartmental ministerial post of Minister for Young People and established the interdepartmental Children and Young People's Unit to be responsible for this work.
A new focus on preventive services and action to address the social exclusion of children and young people has been provided by the new Children's Fund. The Fund is worth £450 million over 2001–02 to 2003–04, of which £380 million is devoted to the development of preventive services by partnerships throughout England and £70 million is devoted to the Children's Fund Local Network making grants to voluntary organisations working on projects to tackle child poverty.
Improving individual services for children and young people was a key theme of the Spending Review 2000, in particular through the introduction of the Connexions service for 13–19 year olds. The first Connexions Partnerships began to deliver services from April this year. £420 million is being invested in Connexions in 2002–03, rising to £455 million in 2003–04. To ensure that national health service provision is designed around children we have announced the establishment of a new NHS National Service Framework. Targeted programmes to support children and young people's individual education needs were set out in the White Paper, "Schools—achieving success" (Cmd 5230). This progress will be further promoted through the cross-cutting review on children at risk announced by my right hon. Friend the Chief Secretary to the Treasury, in response to a written question from my hon. Friend the Member for Preseli, Pembrokeshire (Mrs. Lawrence) on 25 June 2001, Official Report, column 38W.
In "Tomorrow's Future: Building a Strategy for Children and Young People", published on 22 March, the Government set out their commitment to developing an overarching strategy for Children and Young People to ensure that we designed policies around the needs and priorities of young people, including the encouragement of new approaches in Government to ensure effective involvement and participation of children. In the near future, I will be publishing a consultation document on the Government's new strategy for Children and Young People.