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1240/5(5044)
WRITTEN QUESTION TO THE MINISTER FOR HEALTH AND SOCIAL SERVICES BY DEPUTY G.P. SOUTHERN OF ST. HELIER
ANSWER TO BE TABLED ON TUESDAY 19th JANUARY 2010
Question
When will the Minister provide members with a full breakdown of Williamson funding for 2010 along with estimates for 2011 and 2012, in order to provide stable funding for appropriate community initiatives?
Answer
Decisions regarding future funding for services identified within the Williamson Plan must be made within the context of an overarching Children's Plan. It would be inappropriate to make any commitment which does not carefully tie funding to the provision of services and the meeting of objectives which are part of an overall strategy aimed at benefiting all island children, and especially those who are most vulnerable.
We are about to enter a period of unprecedented change and development in the Island's children's services. I am delighted that an additional £2,800,000 has been allocated to Health and Social Services in order to implement the Williamson Plan. There is much to be done both in the short and long term, and it remains essential that investment in services is carefully co-ordinated as part of an overall strategic process – whether those services are directly provided by the States or States funded community initiatives.
In my statement to the House last December I reported that the Ministers for Home Affairs and Education Sport and Culture, who with me make up the Children's' Policy Group, have come together in a re- invigorated and more focussed way. As leaders of this group we are in agreement that the single most important task is the development of the first Children's Plan for Jersey. This will ensure that all services share the same goals, and work cooperatively to provide seamless services. It will form the blueprint' for children's services into the future, and will provide the means to judge how effective they are. Mr Andrew Williamson has been appointed to take the lead in developing the Children's Plan, consulting widely and working with key agencies, both States departments and external organisations. I intend to present the Children's Plan to the States Assembly for its approval during the latter part of 2010.
This is not to say that work on the Williamson recommendations has not already commenced in a substantial number of areas. Priorities for 2010 implementation have been identified, and implementation is already taking place on key initiatives including the recruitment of a specialist legal advisor in Children's proceedings, the signing of a contract with the Social Work Inspection Agency to undertake the independent inspection of services, and the agreeing of recruitment arrangements to establish an Independent Reviewing Officer Service and a Jersey Court Advisory Service. It is the role of Andrew Williamson to lead and oversee the implementation of the Plan which includes the detailed analyses of pertinent projects and consultation on the cost projections and timelines. Such work is not concluded overnight and the data requested by the Deputy will not, therefore, be available for some time.
Therefore I am happy to confirm that, along with my fellow Ministers on the Children's Policy Group, I support the development of early, preventative, non-stigmatising services, including those provided through partnership with community initiatives. I remain convinced, however, that in order to ensure the most effective targeting of finite public monies, it is essential that future funding decisions are made within the context of the evolving Children's Plan, and as such predicting year on year expenditure within the Williamson Plan would be of little value at this time. Mr Williamson will provide a further update for States Members at the end of February 2010 whilst a full expenditure plan will be formed as part of the development of the Children's Plan by late 2010.