The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tim Loughton on 2015-01-15.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate he has made of the number of 111 referrals to A&E departments in NHS hospitals in Sussex over the Christmas and New Year period in (a) 2013-14 and (b) 2014-15.
Jane Ellison
The information is not available in the format requested.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tim Loughton on 2015-01-15.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimate she has made of the number of new cases of historic child abuse which have come forward in the last 12 months; and what recent assessment she has made of the capabilities of police forces to deal with such cases.
Lynne Featherstone
Child sexual abuse is a reprehensible crime which this government is determined to stamp out. We have been clear that if anyone has been a victim of child sexual abuse, or knows of someone who has been a victim, then they should
report it to the police so that it can be thoroughly investigated. The Home Office does not collate statistics on the number of historic cases of child abuse being reported. The resourcing for individual operations investigating child sexual abuse is an operational matter for the relevant Chief Officer.
Operation Hydrant is the national policing response to the oversight and co-ordination of all child abuse investigations concerning persons of public prominence or those offences which took place historically in institutional
settings. Overseen by the National Policing Lead for Child Protection and Abuse Investigations, Operation Hydrant is responsible for the production of best practice guidance for Senior Investigating Officers (SIOs) investigating
relevant allegations.
The College of Policing has also produced Authorised Professional Practice (APP) for forces on Managing complex child abuse investigations.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tim Loughton on 2015-01-15.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what instructions or guidance officials of her Department have given to members of the Independent Inquiry Panel into child sexual abuse about speaking in public about the work of that Panel.
Lynne Featherstone
Before the panel began its substantive work, and the secretariat was fully established, limited guidance was offered to those panel members who needed it.
Panel members are now supported by their own independent secretariat and Counsel. The secretariat will have its own procedures on speaking in publicabout the work of the Inquiry, although we would expect any procedures to respect the
confidentiality of meetings held with survivors.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tim Loughton on 2014-03-27.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, to whom the National Panel on Serious Case Reviews is accountable; and what the terms of reference of that Panel are.
Mr Edward Timpson
The members of national panel of independent experts on Serious Case Reviews (SCR) were appointed by the Secretary of State for Education and are ultimately accountable to him, though they operate independently.
The role of the panel is set out in ‘Working Together to Safeguard Children (2013)’ as follows:
“The role of the panel will be to support Local Safeguarding Children Boards (LSCB) in ensuring that appropriate action is taken to learn from serious incidents in all cases where the statutory criteria are met and to ensure that those lessons are shared through publication of final SCR reports. The panel will also report to the Government their views of how the SCR system is working”.
The panel’s remit will include advising LSCBs about:
1. application of the SCR criteria;
2. appointment of reviewers; and
3. publication of SCR reports.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tim Loughton on 2014-05-07.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what guidance is issued by (a) her Department, (b) ACPO and (c) the College of Policing to ensure consistency of practice in the issuing of police information notices by police services.
Damian Green
Any decision to review or update police guidance on Police Information Notices
is an operational matter for the College of Policing. The College of Policing
will shortly be undertaking a full review and update of the guidance on
investigating stalking to incorporate it into Authorised Professional Practice,
which will include making sure that the guidance on the use of Police
Information Notices is reviewed.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tim Loughton on 2014-04-07.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, which local authorities are involved in investigations of historic abuse by Jimmy Savile; and when he expects the resulting reports to be published.
Mr Edward Timpson
As published in the Written Statement made by my Rt. hon Friend, the Secretary of State for Education on 27 March 2014, the following local authorities are involved in investigations of historical abuse by Jimmy Savile: Bournemouth, Devon, Gloucestershire, Leeds, London Borough of Hounslow, London Borough of Islington, London Borough of Southwark, London Borough of Tower Hamlets, Manchester, Nottingham, Nottinghamshire, and Surrey.
The investigations will be completed at the earliest opportunity, but not before the independent quality assurers are satisfied that they have been full and thorough.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tim Loughton on 2014-06-04.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate he has made of the number of children in care in residential children’s homes who have been placed outside their local authority area.
Mr Edward Timpson
This information is available in Table A3 of ‘Children looked after in England, including adoption’ statistical first release: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/children-looked-after-in-england-including-adoption
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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tim Loughton on 2014-04-07.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether recommendations from the Independent Experts Panel on Serious Case Reviews to Local Safeguarding Children’s Boards are advisory.
Mr Edward Timpson
‘Working Together’ states that local safeguarding children boards “should have regard to the panel’s advice when deciding whether or not to initiate a serious case review (SCR), when appointing reviewers and when considering publication of SCR reports.”
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tim Loughton on 2014-06-04.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what meetings (a) he and (b) other Ministers in his Department have had with the Chief Social Worker for Children and Families since she took up her post.
Mr Edward Timpson
Since starting as the Chief Social Worker for Children and Families in September 2013, Isabelle Trowler has spoken at a wide range of events. In particular she has made presentations to and engaged in discussion with more than 2,500 social workers to support and challenge the profession and spoke at the National Fostering Association conference on 13 May 2014. Isabelle’s presentations are not published.
As the Chief Social Worker for Children and Families, Isabelle provides independent expert advice to Ministers on social work reform. She meets my Rt Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State, and other Ministers in the Department for Education frequently to discuss her ideas for social work reform and to provide policy advice.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tim Loughton on 2014-04-07.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, which children’s services departments have instituted the role of Principal Social Worker; and how many people each such department employs.
Mr Edward Timpson
The Department for Education does not hold this information. Local authorities are responsible for the recruitment and deployment of social workers, including those they appoint to the Principal Social Worker role.