Northern Ireland Assembly

3.15 pm

3.

asked the Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety to give her assessment of the recruitment and retention of foster parents; and to make a statement.

(AQO 769/00)

I mí Mheán Fómhair 1999 sheol mo Roinn cód cleachtais maidir le caighdeáin chúraim altrama agus maidir le cúramóirí altrama a earcú, a mheasúnú, a fhormheas, a oiliúint agus a bhainistiú agus le tacaíocht a thabhairt dóibh. Is é an cuspóir a bhí leis ná dea-chleachtas agus seirbhísí ardchaighdeáin altrama a chur chun cinn. Déanfaidh gach iontaobhas sláinte agus seirbhísí sóisialta iniúchadh ar ball ar an tseirbhís chúraim altramais atá aige i gcoinne na gcaighdeán seo. Nuair a bhéas an t-iniúchadh seo críochnaithe beidh sé ar mo chumas gach gné den tseirbhís luachmhar seo a mheasúnú.

There have been some difficulties with the recruitment and retention of foster carers. The health and social services trusts are aware of those problems and are endeavouring to address them. In September 1999 my Department launched a code of practice on the recruitment, assessment, approval, training, management and support of foster carers and standards for foster care, both of which were designed to promote good practice and a high-quality fostering service. Each trust will shortly undertake an audit of its foster care service against those standards. When that has been completed I will be in a position to assess all aspects of this valuable service.

Mr David McClarty. Oh, Mr David Ford.

Thank you, Madam Deputy Speaker. I thought you had forgotten me.

Never.

I thank the Minister for her response, although I am slightly worried when she talks about "some difficulties" with the recruitment and retention of foster parents. If she were using the language that social workers use, she would not be using a euphemism such as "some difficulties". In view of the serious difficulties that exist in recruiting and retaining foster parents, is it acceptable that little seems to have been done since the 1999 report to which she referred? What is she going to do to ensure that trusts take serious action now, including looking at the different methods used in other jurisdictions, to ensure that we can increase the number of foster parents and improve the care service offered to our children?

I am aware that some 200 additional foster carers are needed. Last September the Foster Care Association organised a foster care awareness week, which was designed to encourage recruitment. The response to that initiative is now being assessed, and we will be interested in hearing its outcome. I assure the Member that my Department will give priority to the development of foster care services. Moreover, all the boards have indicated that the development of foster care services is among their priorities, as we have asked.

With the help of the national Foster Care Association and the necessary computer support, we can assist the trusts. We can ensure that the audit will address good practice that has been developed elsewhere, as well as the standard audit, which we will be able to track.

Thank you, Madam Deputy Speaker. I understand completely the difficulty you had in distinguishing between me and David Ford.

Last September, when 322 children were waiting for foster homes in Northern Ireland, the Minister encouraged more people to become foster parents. Can the Minister indicate to the House how many children are presently waiting for foster homes and how many of those are still on the waiting list from last September? Furthermore, can the Minister indicate by constituencies, areas of (a) poor recruitment and (b) retention difficulties?

Perhaps the Member would make that a written question rather than an oral one. Such detailed questions cannot possibly be answered without advance notice. The Members who are putting them as oral questions, rather than as written ones, know that they cannot possibly be answered. However, I will supply the necessary details for each constituency. If the Member writes to me, I will supply that information.

We are endeavouring to produce increased support for foster carers and to increase the number of foster carers. That has been addressed in the Programme for Government. We are also trying to ensure that there is increased support to overcome difficulties in the retention of foster carers.

Go raibh maith agat, Madam Deputy Speaker. Does the Minister agree that funding is a test for the Executive, not only on the delivery of foster care but on children's services as a whole? Is there a different level of financial support -

Order.

Are there different levels of financial support for foster carers across trusts?

I thank Mr Paisley for his attention.

I have frequently and consistently highlighted the considerable need for greater resources across a wide range of health and social services, including children's services. In advance of the Budget allocations this year, I bid for what I considered to be necessary. I also made it clear that I did not think it possible for the Executive to address that this year because of competing priorities. We are now taking up that question and examining the need. The kind of examination that the Executive are now making of needs across the health and social services should help us to address the level of budgetary allocation to health, social services and public safety for the future.

On the question of variation between trusts, some concerns have been expressed about the payment of allowances and expenses associated with caring for foster children. One of the 25 foster care standards deals with that aspect of the service. The audit that is about to commence will track the performance of the trusts in that.

4.

asked the Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety to confirm that the third report from the capitation formula review group is proposing that for every £100 allocated to children's health care in Northern Ireland, only £77 will be allocated per child in the Northern Health and Social Services Board area while £122 per child will be given to some other areas; and to make a statement.

(AQO 785/00)

Ceapadh an fhoirmle le cinntiú go léiríonn leithroinnt na n-acmhainní na leibhéil dhifriúla riachtanais i gceantair éagsúla. Is amhlaidh, mar sin, gur mó na hacmhainní a leithroinnfear ar cheantair inár mó na leibhéil ganntanais agus riachtanais eile. Is mar seo a chinntíonn an fhoirmle go bhfaigheann bord a bhfuil níos mó páistí i ngátar faoina chúram go leor acmhainní leis an leibhéal céanna cúraim a sholáthar do pháiste i ngátar agus a thiocfadh le bord ar bith eile a sholáthar. Ós rud é go bhfuil leibhéal an ghanntanais i bhfad níos lú, ar meán, i gceantar Bhord an Tuaiscirt, is lú an t-airgead atá de dhíth le tabhairt faoi leibhéal an ghanntanais ann.

The formula is designed to ensure that the allocation of resources reflects the different levels of need in different areas. Areas with higher levels of deprivation and other needs will be allocated correspondingly more resources. In this way, the formula ensures that a board with more needy children receives enough resources to provide the same level of care to a needy child as can be provided in any other board. As the level of deprivation is, on average, much lower in the Northern Health and Social Services Board area, it requires less money to address the level of need. It is for this reason that it has the lowest average allocation per child in the population for children's social services in the family and childcare programme.

Can the Minister confirm that the overall effect of the proposed formula changes will result in the Northern Board being short several million pounds compared to the funding it would have received if the current formula was simply updated using current demographic factors?

Does the Minister accept that the criteria create a huge disparity between different board areas in family and childcare funding? Does she also recognise that the formula does not take account of all homes in receipt of income support, those forced to live in private rented accommodation or parents in low-paid employment living in poor-quality private housing? Does the Minister accept that the weighting is out of character with all other factors in this proposed document? I contend that the disparity is huge and needs to be re-addressed.

The figures on the overall impact of the boards' shares and the proposed changes to the formula are not yet finalised. However, if the transitional relief currently being given to the Southern Board to phase the last formula changes is excluded, the current assessment is that the Northern Board's share of resources will increase from 23·69% to 23·70%.

The Western Board's share will increase from 16·53% to 16·69%. The Southern Board's share will remain constant at 17·67%. The Eastern Board's share will reduce from 42·11% to 41·94%. There may still be some further adjustments, based on the outcome of consultation.

With regard to the matter of needs weighting, considerable research has been done into how needs and other weightings for gender and age should be worked out. Therefore I cannot accept that there are any negative aspects to the way in which this is carried out.

On the contrary, it would be wrong for us to continue with a dated formula which does not take account of the up-to-date information we now have on the effects of age, gender and deprivation on the need for resources. We now also know much more about the impact of rural consideration on the costs faced by boards.

5.

asked the Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety to give her assessment of primary care provision in Mid Ulster; and to make a statement.

(AQO 779/00)

Is é an cuspóir atá leis an soláthar cúraim phríomhúil i Lár Uladh go mbeidh teacht réidh ag an phobal ar réimse iomlán seirbhísí cúraim phríomhúil ar fud an cheantair.

The primary care provision in Mid Ulster is designed to offer good access and coverage for the population of the area to the full range of primary care services.

Following the Minister's announcement this morning that she will continue to provide high levels of funding, can she advise us what criteria are used when assessing the viability of primary care sites? Can I be assured that the rural nature of my constituency, coupled with poor road infrastructure, will be given due weight in her thinking? Does the Minister accept that healthcare provision must be seen in the round and that, no matter how satisfactory primary care may be in Mid Ulster, this provision is undermined by the inadequacy of hospital services?

I have indeed said that I will endeavour to make improvements and to ensure the highest quality services. I now re-affirm that commitment to the Mid Ulster area.

In answer to the question about roads, interdepartmental consultation on the development of the Department for Regional Development's transportation strategy is ongoing. Work is also progressing on the health impact on that strategy. That will also take into account the need to look at health matters when developing road structures.

We are endeavouring to improve primary care services in the Mid Ulster area. We recently funded two innovative pilot projects, which were put forward by the Homefirst Community Trust, across the entire Mid Ulster area.

One of these is aimed at improving access to dental care for housebound people; this has an effect on the Member's wider concern about the impact of the road infrastructure on health. We have also funded an initiative on out-of-hours community mental health. It is hoped that these will bring benefits that can be replicated in other areas.