- Asked by: Mary Scanlon, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 06 November 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Cathy Jamieson on 19 November 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive what action is being taken to ensure that all young adults on probation have action plans as required in the national objectives and standards for social work services in the criminal justice system, as recommended in Audit Scotland's report Dealing with offending by young people - A follow-up report.
Answer
We are currently consideringthe need for interim guidance to be issued to groupings/unitary authorities todraw their attention to this recommendation. The guidance will be informed bythe programme of Inspections of criminal justice social work by the Social WorkServices Inspectorate, which has now commenced.
The Audit Scotlandrecommendation will also be taken account of in the planned revision of nationalstandards, on which preliminary work has already begun.
- Asked by: Mary Scanlon, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 06 November 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Cathy Jamieson on 19 November 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive what action is being taken to address the approximately 25% of cases that did not receive a continuous service for children on supervision, as referred to in Audit Scotland's report Dealing with offending by young people - A follow-up report.
Answer
Local authorities areresponsible in statute for implementing supervision requirements. I intend tomeet shortly with local authority Chief Executives to discuss the AuditScotland report, what needs to change to improve service delivery, and how bestto accelerate progress in these key areas.
- Asked by: Mary Scanlon, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 06 November 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Cathy Jamieson on 19 November 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive what action is being taken to address the time taken for police reports to reach the Children's Reporter, given that Audit Scotland's report Dealing with offending by young people - A follow-up report indicates that two police forces had no such data available and that 28% of cases recorded by the Central Scotland police force met the 14-day prescribed period.
Answer
Time Intervals has been inplace since 1999. The Executive has been consulting all agencies, including thepolice, over the summer on a new way to re-focus the process of monitoring andimproving performance.
This issue willbe discussed at my next meeting with the Association of Chief Police OfficersScotland.
- Asked by: Mary Scanlon, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 06 November 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Tom McCabe on 19 November 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive what action it is taking to provide specialist mental health services in residential settings and young offenders institutions, as referred to in Audit Scotland's report Dealing with offending by young people - A follow-up report.
Answer
We recognise the need tostrengthen specialist mental health input for children and young people inresidential settings and young offender institutions, and officials are consideringwith NHSScotland how this can be achieved more effectively. NHSScotland mentalhealth input to residential schools, secure units and Young Offenders’ Institutionsis currently restricted by workforce shortages across Scotland withinchild and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS). A National Mental HealthWorkforce Group has recently been established and CAMHS is a recognised priorityfor attention.
Mental health input toresidential settings is also being considered in the context of the recommendationsof the Scottish needs assessment programme review of child and adolescentmental health, which reported in March 2003. The report highlights the need forthe development of a multi-agency approach to child and adolescent mentalhealth alongside specialist services. The child health support group hasestablished a child and adolescent mental health development group to supportimplementation of the report.
- Asked by: Mary Scanlon, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 06 November 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Cathy Jamieson on 19 November 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will publish annual reports on the performance of youth justice teams against national standards, as recommended in Audit Scotland's report Dealing with offending by young people - A follow-up report
Answer
The Executive has welcomed the report and accepted all the recommendations.
- Asked by: Mary Scanlon, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 06 November 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Cathy Jamieson on 19 November 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will review the quality of current records for children on supervision, as recommended in Audit Scotland's report Dealing with offending by young people - A follow-up report.
Answer
I refer the member to the answer given to question S2W-3931 on 19 November 2003. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at
http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/search_wa.
- Asked by: Mary Scanlon, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 06 November 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Cathy Jamieson on 19 November 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will set standards for the frequency of contact with children on supervision, as recommended in Audit Scotland's report Dealing with offending by young people - A follow-up report.
Answer
Social Work ServicesInspectorate will be issuing a guidance note shortly setting minimum standardsfor frequency of contact and case notes. Forthcomingplans for inspection of children’s services will also focus on the quality ofdelivery by youth justice services.
- Asked by: Mary Scanlon, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 06 November 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Cathy Jamieson on 19 November 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive what action is being taken to ensure that all local authorities implement the statutory requirement to provide care plans for all children on supervision
Answer
I intend to meet shortly withlocal authority Chief Executives to discuss the Audit Scotland report, whatneeds to change to improve service delivery, and how best to accelerateprogress in these key areas.
- Asked by: Mary Scanlon, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 06 November 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Cathy Jamieson on 19 November 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive what action it is taking to submit social care and police reports to the Reporter, as referred to in Audit Scotland's report Dealing with offending by young people - A follow-up report.
Answer
The Executive does notitself submit the reports referred to, which are the responsibility of councilsand the police respectively.I refer the member to the answer given to question S2W-3923. All answers to written parliamentaryquestions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility forwhich can be found at
http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/search_wa.
- Asked by: Mary Scanlon, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 22 October 2003
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Current Status:
Answered by Euan Robson on 19 November 2003
To ask the Scottish Executive how many vacancies exist in social work children's services and what proportion this represents of all social work vacancies in each local authority.
Answer
Latest figures show 842vacancies in local authority social work children’s services across Scotland in2003. This represents a vacancy rate of 12.9%. A breakdown of children’sservices vacancies by local authority is not available at present. Furtherinformation is available in Statistical Bulletin SWK-S-2003-25 – Staff ofScottish Local Authority Social Work Services 2002 at:
http://www.scotland.gov.uk/stats/bulletins/00273-00.asp.
