HL Deb 17 March 2005 vol 670 cc63-4WS
Lord McIntosh of Haringey

My right honourable friend the Chief Secretary to the Treasury (Mr Paul Boateng) has made the following Written Ministerial Statement.

I am pleased to announce that 37 bids from across the public and voluntary sectors have been successful in round 7 of the Invest to Save Budget at a cost of £37 million in total over the three years to 2007–08 for England. The allocated sum rises to £43 million to include consequential funding for the devolved administrations. Details of the winners of this round have been placed in the Library of the House.

The Invest to Save Budget (ISB) provides support for projects that increase the extent of joint working between different parts of government; identify innovative ways of delivering public services; and reduce the cost of delivering the services and/or improve the quality and effectiveness of services delivered to the public.

This, the seventh round of the ISB, concentrates on the priority areas of:

Health and social care for older people;

Employment for people from black and ethnic minority communities;

Correctional services;

Hostel provision for homeless people;

Support for parents and learning services for adults; and

Integration for people from ethnic minorities.

Winning projects must agree an implementation plan with the sponsor departments. Each project must provide six-monthly progress reports and carry out an evaluation of its success once it has been completed. Wider dissemination of the good practice from completed projects is then fed back into the whole spectrum of public service providers.