§ Sandra GidleyTo ask the Secretary of State for Health how many of the pledged(a) secure beds, (b) 24-hour staffed beds and (c) assertive outreach teams with patient access available 24 hours a day, seven days a week for those with complex mental health needs are in place; and how many he estimates there will be by April. [46285]
§ Jacqui SmithThe targets set in the NHS Plan for April 2001 were all achieved on time. These included over 500 additional secure beds, over 320 additional 24-hour staffed beds, 170 assertive outreach teams and access to services 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, for all those with complex mental health needs. At April 2002 the latest forecast figures show that there will be:
- 199 assertive outreach teams in operation
- 4,435 24-hour staffed beds.
Forecast figures for the number of secure psychiatric beds at April 2002 have not been collected. The outturn figure for beds at various levels of security for 2000–01 was 4,860. Current monitoring arrangements for secure beds do not include provision of forecasts. The mental health service mapping provides numbers of secure beds as at September 2001, and the bed availability and occupancy annual returns provide bed occupancy rates by ward classification, of which "secure unit: other ages" is a mental illness ward classification.