Written Assembly Questions tabled on 23 March 2015 for answer on 30 March 2015

R - Signifies the Member has declared an interest.
W - Signifies that the question was tabled in Welsh.

(Self identifying Question no. shown in brackets)

Written Questions must be tabled at least five working days before they are to be answered. In practice, Ministers aim to answer within seven/eight days but are not bound to do so. Answers are published in the language in which they are provided, with a translation into English of responses provided in Welsh.

To ask the Minister for Natural Resources

Kirsty Williams (Brecon and Radnorshire): What measures is the Minister taking to support farmers in Brecon & Radnorshire who are losing lambs to attacks by ravens? (WAQ68526)

Answer received on 27 March 2015

The Deputy Minister for Farming and Food (Rebecca Evans): Ravens are a protected species in the UK under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 (WCA 1981).   Natural Resources Wales can issue licences under Section 16(1) to permit the killing or taking of wild birds including ravens where attacks on lambs can be evidenced and there is no other satisfactory solution.

The Welsh Government has also developed an advisory leaflet on the crow family which provides information on control and preventative measures.

To ask the Minister for Communities and Tackling Poverty

Mark Isherwood (North Wales): Further to the Welsh Government Grant for frontline advice services from 2014-15, when did Shelter Cymru and CAB Cymru have the funding confirmed? (WAQ68527)

Answer Received on 31 March 2015

The Minister for Communities and Tackling Poverty (Lesley Griffiths): Shelter Cymru and Citizens Advice Cymru were informed of the decision in relation to the front line advice services grant in September 2014. Welsh Government issued a Grant Award Letter formally confirming the funding in early October 2014.

Mark Isherwood (North Wales): Further to the Welsh Government Grant for frontline advice services from 2014-15, when did Shelter Cymru and CAB Cymru receive their funding? (WAQ68528)

Answer Received on 31 March 2015

Lesley Griffiths: The first payment to Citizens Advice Cymru in partnership with Shelter Cymru was made in November 2014.

Mark Isherwood (North Wales): Further to the Welsh Government grant for frontline advice services from 2014-15, please confirm the period which the initial funding is to cover and whether it could be used to employ staff after that date? (WAQ68529)

Answer Received on 31 March 2015

Lesley Griffiths: The initial funding related to the financial year 2014-15,  is to be used before the end of March 2015. I have agreed to continue to provide this grant in 2015-16 to the organisations which were successful as part of the 2014 grant application process. The organisations have been informed of this decision and Grant Award Letters for the next financial year have been issued.

To ask the Minister for Education and Skills

Kirsty Williams (Brecon and Radnorshire): Will the Minister make a statement on the impact the Donaldson report will have on the allocation of capital resources for school buildings and estates? (WAQ68521)

Answer Received on 27 March 2015

The Minister for Education and Skills (Huw Lewis): On the 4th March, I launched the Great Debate on education. The Great Debate is an opportunity for people across Wales to get involved and help shape our future curriculum and assessment arrangements. This first phase allows the public to engage with some of the big issues in Professor Donaldson's report, including the case for change, and the nature of the 4 purposes of the curriculum.  All stakeholders will have an opportunity to make their views known including any implications on capital resource. The future design and delivery of new school buildings will need to be sufficiently flexible to accommodate, where appropriate, an evolving curriculum which meets the needs of all learners across Wales. 

I will publish my formal response to Professor Donaldson's report following the outcome of the Great Debate.

Kirsty Williams (Brecon and Radnorshire): Will the Minister make a statement on capital investment for primary schools within the Gwernyfed High School catchment area? (WAQ68522)

Answer Received on 27 March 2015

Huw Lewis: Powys Local Authority commenced the review of ten primary schools in the Gwernyfed area in 2009.  In October 2014, Welsh Government subsequently approved the Programme Business Case/Strategic Outline Case submitted by Powys Local Authority in respect of primary school provision in the Gwernyfed area.  The Local Authority anticipates submitting the second iteration of their business case in late April 2015.

Kirsty Williams (Brecon and Radnorshire): Will the Minister make a statement on the impact of school closures where the closure will lead to Welsh pupils' nearest school being in England? (WAQ68523)

Answer Received on 31 March 2015

Huw Lewis: Local authorities considering changes to school provision must take into account the need for places and the impact of the change on the accessibility of schools. It is for local authorities to consider the most appropriate way of fulfilling their duties under the relevant legislation. Parents have a right to express a preference for the school that they wish pupils to attend. This has historically resulted in some pupil movement both into and out of Wales. 

Ann Jones (Vale of Clwyd): What duties do schools have to support learners who have stammers? (WAQ68524)

Answer Received on 31 March 2015

Huw Lewis: The Education Act 1996 places the duty on Local Authorities (LAs) to provide suitable education for all pupils, including those who may have special educational needs (SEN). Children have SEN if they have a learning difficulty which calls for special educational provision to be made for them.  Pupils with SEN may be assessed as having Speech, Language and Communication Difficulties (SLCD) which is a difficulty in understanding and/or making others understand information conveyed through spoken language. SLCD can include problems with the production of speech such as a stammer.  

Part IV of the Education Act 1996 sets out the legislative framework for children with SEN and the duties and responsibilities placed upon LAs and maintained schools.  In addition LAs must also have due regard to the SEN Code of Practice for Wales which provides practical advice to them and maintained schools on carrying out their statutory duties to identify, assess and make provision for children with SEN. I have attached the link to the SEN Code of Practice that you may find useful.

http://learning.wales.gov.uk/resources/browse-all/special-education-needs-code-of-practice/?lang=en

Where a school identifies a child has a stammer, in discussion with the parents, they may decide to refer to a speech and language therapist for an initial assessment. Health boards are of course responsible for planning and providing speech and therapy language services for children with stammers.

Learners with a stammer could also be regarded as having a disability if the extent of their stammer has a substantial adverse effect on their ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities. In these situations, the Equality Act 2010 places a duty on schools and local authorities to provide auxiliary aids and services as part of their duty to make reasonable adjustments for disabled children.

Lynne Neagle (Torfaen): What steps is the Welsh Government taking to ensure that children awaiting a CAHMS assessment/ diagnosis receive appropriate support in school? (WAQ68530)

Answer Received on 31 March 2015

Huw Lewis: From April 2013 local authorities have been required, under the School Standards and Organisation (Wales) Act to make reasonable provision of counselling services for children and young people aged between 11 and 18 in their area and pupils in year 6 of primary school. At the same time £4.5m was transferred to the Revenue Support Grant for the continued support of this service. We have published statutory guidance for local authorities on the provision of independent counselling services (one of the key actions in the Welsh Government's "Together for Mental Health" Delivery Plan 2012-16).

Counselling is one of a range of services that help to support the health, emotional and social needs of young people. Early and easy access to counselling can prevent mental health problems developing or becoming more serious, and can build up trust and confidence to enable young people to access more specialist services if required.

Counselling is not intended to replace either the pastoral support provided by responsible adults in educational settings to promote the general well-being of children and young people, or the very specialist services provided through CAMHS.

In the longer term, to ensure the sustainability of Children and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) in Wales, the NHS is leading service change and reconfiguration of the service. This work is being supported by the Welsh Government, which has commissioned the internationally renowned child psychiatrist Professor, Dame Sue Bailey, to provide the external advice and scrutiny to the NHS as it seeks to embed a cultural and organisational change within CAMHS and its partners, this includes schools and education.  This approach is entirely in line with our priorities for prudent healthcare, enabling the most appropriate professional and agency to work within their field of expertise, and ensuring the young person is not stigmatised from an early age as in receipt of specialist mental health services, when their needs can often be met without recourse to such services.

Research has also shown the effectiveness of high quality self help books. A UK Government Department of Health review concluded that methods of self help have a high potential for treating common mental health problems and can help to avoid having to prescribe medication to combat mental health issues.  To support this Welsh Government have established a group to take forward extending a Book Prescription Wales (BPW) scheme for children and young people.  We will be highlighting the scheme in schools across Wales as an additional tool for supporting young people with emotional and mental health needs.

To ask the Minister for the Economy, Science and Transport

Lynne Neagle (Torfaen): What steps is the Welsh Government taking to ensure that culture and heritage in Wales receives its fair share of lottery funding? (WAQ68531)

Answer to follow.

To ask the Minister for Health and Social Services

Ann Jones (Vale of Clwyd): What support do NHS organisations provide to children who stammer? (WAQ68525)

Answer Received on 31 March 2015

The Minister for Health and Social Services (Mark Drakeford): Health boards are responsible for planning and providing speech and therapy language services for children with stammer. 

Following initial assessment by a speech and language therapist, young people and parents are consulted and a care plan is designed taking into account the best course of treatment and the wishes of the child/young person.  This may include individual or group therapy sessions. 

Health boards also have links with organisations that work with staff and patients to provide training in specialist techniques to staff, and further assessment and treatment to patients where appropriate.

Darren Millar (Clwyd West): What was the total spending by Welsh Health Boards on CAMHS in each of the past 5 years? (WAQ68532)

Darren Millar (Clwyd West): What was the total spending by Welsh Health Boards per CAMHS patient in each of the past 5 years? (WAQ68533)

Answer received on 31 March 2015

Mark Drakeford: The information does not take account of the Mental Health (Wales) Measure funding made available since 2012-13 and in particular the £3.5m made available each year to support the provision of local primary mental health support services for all ages.  There appears to be a fall in primary care funding across the years, although the overall total spend remains broadly the same.  This is largely a result of administrative changes in accounting as a result of health board categorisation of service location.

Information about the number of patients seen by CAMHS is held by health boards.

Notes:

1. Extracted from the annual consolidated Programme Budgeting returns submitted to the FIS Team
2. WHSSC was previously known as HCW
3. 2012/13 Costs are due to be published by Health Stats about 28th May and so are provisional figures for 12/13
4. 2011/12 costs have been corrected following an allocation anomaly, health Stats will be updating their 2011/12 data accordingly
5. The 2008/09 returns were at the 22 LHB level

Darren Millar (Clwyd West): What action is the Welsh Government taking to reduce waiting times for CAMHS services in Wales? (WAQ68534)

Answer Received on 31 March 2015

Mark Drakeford: There has been a 103% increase in referrals over the last four years, but CAMHS is also seeing 70% more young people within four weeks from referral and nearly 80% more within an 18 week period over the same period. 

Reducing waiting times addressed through our CAMHS service improvement plan. 

Andrew RT Davies (South Wales Central): Will the Minister provide figures for the number of patients who have received a second cycle of IVF treatment on the Welsh NHS in each of the last 4 financial years? (WAQ68535)

Answer Received on 7 April 2015

Mark Drakeford: The number of NHS patients receiving a second cycle of IVF treatment by financial year is 210 in 2011/12, 194 in 2012/13 and 230 in 2013/14. At month 10  in the 2014/15 financial year the figure is 255 but the end of year forecast is 306.

Andrew RT Davies (South Wales Central): How many patients have started treatment in the new IVF unit at Neath Port Talbot hospital in each of the financial years since it was established? (WAQ68536)

Answer Received on 7 April 2015

Mark Drakeford: The new IVF unit at Neath Port Talbot delivered its first cycle of treatment in September 2013 and reported its 2013-14 data as part of the combined Welsh Fertility Institute results. From April 2014 to the end of January 2015, 504 patients have started various types of IVF treatment at the Neath Port Talbot unit.

Andrew RT Davies (South Wales Central): What was the total Welsh Government spend in relation to the establishment of the new IVF clinic at Neath Port Talbot hospital, including a breakdown between the capital and revenue budgets? (WAQ68537)

Answer Received on 7 April 2015

Mark Drakeford: The Welsh Government has not funded a capital investment business case for the IVF clinic at Neath Port Talbot Hospital.

Andrew RT Davies (South Wales Central): What is the current average waiting time for a) the first cycle and b) the second cycle of IVF treatment on the Welsh NHS, also providing figures for each of the last four years? (WAQ68538)

Answer Received on 7 April 2015

Mark Drakeford: It is important to recognise IVF is not subject to waiting times guidance as there are clinical reasons why patients should wait for 12 months as evidence shows a significant number of couples will conceive naturally while waiting. The waiting times are: