Asked by: Lord Touhig (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they expect that the number of people with autism detained in mental health hospitals will have reduced by 50 per cent by March 2024.
Answered by Lord Markham - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
We have made significant progress towards reducing the number of people with a learning disability and autistic people in inpatient mental health settings.
For people who have a learning disability and who do not have an autism diagnosis, the data shows that has been a 57% reduction in the number of people in hospital since March 2015. For people who have both a learning disability and autism diagnosis, there has been a 33% reduction in the number of people in hospital since March 2015.
However, the number of people with an autism diagnosis, who do not have a learning disability, in hospital inpatient settings has increased significantly over the same period. As such, we know there is more to do. This is why we are investing an additional £121 million in 2023/24 to improve community support as part of the NHS Long Term Plan, including funding for Children and Young People’s keyworkers. In addition to this, all Integrated Care Boards should have an executive lead on learning disability and autism to increase local oversight and expertise in commissioning, and NHS England has published updated policy and guidance on Care (Education) and Treatment Reviews and Dynamic Support Registers to help ensure people get the right support to stay well in their communities.
Asked by: Lord Touhig (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government why autism is defined as a disability in some application forms for help from the Access to Work scheme and not in other cases.
Answered by Viscount Younger of Leckie - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
To apply for Access to Work customers must complete an application either online or over the phone. The application is the same no matter how they complete it. Customers are asked to describe their condition in their own words and how it impacts their work. The application form does not list or ask about any specific conditions. This supports the principle that Access to Work is tailored to each customer’s disability and support need.
Asked by: Lord Touhig (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to introduce mandatory targets for the reduction of the number of autistic people being held in mental health hospitals.
Answered by Lord Markham - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
There are currently no plans to introduce mandatory targets for the reduction of the number of autistic people who are detained in mental health hospitals. Where admission to hospital is needed, it must be therapeutic, least restrictive and for the shortest time possible.
The NHS Long Term Plan is committed to achieving a 50% net reduction in the number of autistic people and people with a learning disability who are inpatients in mental health hospitals by end of March 2024. This objective is inclusive of autistic inpatients who are not diagnosed with a learning disability.
Asked by: Lord Touhig (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what specialist support they offer to unaccompanied migrant children who have been arrested, including those who have been trafficked, to enable them to rebuild their lives.
Answered by Baroness Barran - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The department takes the welfare of unaccompanied migrant children extremely seriously and we are committed to ensuring they are safe and secure. Local authorities have a duty to provide services to all children in need in their area. Under Section 20 of the Children Act 1989, those under the age of 18 arriving as unaccompanied asylum-seekers should enter the care of the local authority in which area they first present.
All unaccompanied children, including those who have been arrested or trafficked, should be safeguarded and have their welfare promoted in the same way as any other looked-after child. Social Workers and other practitioners including police, health, education and youth offender services practitioners, and those who care for looked-after children, are encouraged to consider the full range of support available to looked after children in their areas, including that from community and other organisations.
The provisions under the Modern Slavery Act 2015 ensure that if there is uncertainty over whether a potential victim of trafficking is a child or an adult, then that person is presumed to be a child and receives the appropriate support without delay. If practitioners have concerns that a child may be a potential victim of modern slavery or human trafficking, then a referral should be made to the National Referral Mechanism (NRM) as soon as possible. Guidance on making a referral can be found in the attached document. The NRM acts as a formal framework for first responders to identify potential victims of trafficking and assists with the provision of victim support. Like any other child in need, a trafficked child referred through the NRM should be safeguarded by the local authority on which the referral is made. Where it is evident that the child faces a significant risk of harm from the trafficker, appropriate arrangements will need to be put in place to keep the child safe from harm, and the child’s care plan should include such measures.
In addition, the Home Office has rolled out Independent Child Trafficking Guardians (ICTGs) to two thirds of local authorities in England and Wales. In June 2023, the Minister for Safeguarding agreed to extend the current grant agreement to 31 March 2025, alongside working to deliver ICTG national rollout covering all of England and Wales. ICTGs are an additional source of advice and support for potentially trafficked children, and somebody who can advocate on their behalf to ensure their best interests are reflected in the decision-making processes undertaken by the public authorities who are involved in the child’s care. The support they provided is in addition to the statutory support provided to children by local authorities. Statutory guidance on roles and responsibilities of ICTGs is attached.
Asked by: Lord Touhig (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many unaccompanied migrant children who have gone missing from hotels run by the Home Office have since been arrested; and for what offences.
Answered by Lord Murray of Blidworth
UASC hotels are temporary accommodation that provide safeguarding for a child until they are ready to be transferred through the National Transfer Scheme (NTS) from an entry local authority to another local authority in the UK for ongoing care and support.
We take the safety of those in our care seriously. We have robust safeguarding procedures in place to ensure all young people in emergency interim hotels are safe and supported as we seek urgent placements with a local authority.
The data requested cannot be provided as it comes from live operational databases that have not been quality assured.
The most recent published data can be found at Asylum and resettlement datasets - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).
Although the Home Office would record that an Unaccompanied Asylum Seeking Child (UASC) who’s gone missing from a UASC Hotel was arrested when they were found, we aren’t always notified of the full circumstances in which a UASC is found, and therefore we would not be able to provide details for this request.
Asked by: Lord Touhig (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many unaccompanied migrant children who have gone missing from hotels run by the Home Office have since been found.
Answered by Lord Murray of Blidworth
UASC hotels are temporary accommodation that provide safeguarding for a child until they are ready to be transferred through the National Transfer Scheme (NTS) from an entry local authority to another local authority in the UK for ongoing care and support.
We take the safety of those in our care seriously. We have robust safeguarding procedures in place to ensure all young people in emergency interim hotels are safe and supported as we seek urgent placements with a local authority.
The data requested cannot be provided as it comes from live operational databases that have not been quality assured.
The most recent published data can be found at Asylum and resettlement datasets - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).
Although the Home Office would record that an Unaccompanied Asylum Seeking Child (UASC) who’s gone missing from a UASC Hotel was arrested when they were found, we aren’t always notified of the full circumstances in which a UASC is found, and therefore we would not be able to provide details for this request.
Asked by: Lord Touhig (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many unaccompanied migrant children have gone missing from hotels run by the Home Office.
Answered by Lord Murray of Blidworth
UASC hotels are temporary accommodation that provide safeguarding for a child until they are ready to be transferred through the National Transfer Scheme (NTS) from an entry local authority to another local authority in the UK for ongoing care and support.
We take the safety of those in our care seriously. We have robust safeguarding procedures in place to ensure all young people in emergency interim hotels are safe and supported as we seek urgent placements with a local authority.
The data requested cannot be provided as it comes from live operational databases that have not been quality assured.
The most recent published data can be found at Asylum and resettlement datasets - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).
Although the Home Office would record that an Unaccompanied Asylum Seeking Child (UASC) who’s gone missing from a UASC Hotel was arrested when they were found, we aren’t always notified of the full circumstances in which a UASC is found, and therefore we would not be able to provide details for this request.
Asked by: Lord Touhig (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether section 20 of the Children Act 1989 allows local authorities to delegate their duties under that section for child protection to other public bodies.
Answered by Baroness Barran - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Local authorities have a duty to provide services to all children in need in their area. Under Section 20 of the Children Act 1989, local authorities are under a statutory obligation to provide accommodation to children when the criteria in Section 20(1) is met.
It is the responsibility of the local authority to ensure that the duty to accommodate is met. Whilst the local authority can make arrangements with other persons to act on their behalf by providing certain services, including the provision of accommodation, the local authority is still responsible for meeting the duty under Section 20 of the Children Act 1989, and for anything that flows from a child being accommodated by the local authority.
Asked by: Lord Touhig (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government under which legal provision the Home Office has assumed child protection powers for unaccompanied migrant children.
Answered by Lord Murray of Blidworth
We expect local authorities to meet their statutory obligations to children from the date they arrive in the UK. The best place for these young people is and will remain within a local authority care placement.
The Home Office is not currently in the position of corporate parent to any unaccompanied child.
There is nothing in the Illegal Migration Bill which changes this position.
It will continue to be for the local authority where an unaccompanied child is located to consider its duties under the Children Act 1989.
Asked by: Lord Touhig (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many businesses and companies in (1) England, (2) Scotland, and (3) Wales, have received support from the Access to Work scheme to employ disabled people.
Answered by Viscount Younger of Leckie - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
Access to Work applications are made by employees or self-employed individuals. The scheme provides grants to fund support for those individuals. Table 8 of the Access to Work Official Statistics includes the number of people who received Access to Work provision from 2009/10 to 2021/22 by region.
The latest Access to Work statistics can be found here:
Access to Work statistics - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).