§ Mr. LawsTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many stress audits were carried out in his Department in each of the last five years; what the cost of each audit was; what assessment of the effects of the audits has been made; and if he will make a statement. [156590]
§ Ruth KellyA stress audit was carried out in 2000 at a cost of £20,000. The audit drew attention to several problems and a staff group was set up to assess its recommendations and to take forward an action plan. To measure progress against the 2000 stress audit, a follow up well being survey was carried out in 2003 at a cost of £15,000. Generally the results of the survey were positive: levels of stress had decreased since the 2000 stress audit. However there remained scope for improvement and a new staff group has been set up to focus on what more should be done.
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