asked the Secretary of State for Social Services whether his Department has received any requests for financial assistance to set up a national organisation for parents with the object of reducing the incidence of child battering; and what replies were sent.

One application for a grant to organise a national parents' anonymous association has been received. In reply my Department welcomed the work being done by local groups of this kind in providing mutual support for parents but expressed the view that they are most effective when set up locally by those with a special interest in and commitment to them. We are not satisfied that there is at present a rôle or general demand for the central organisation proposed in the application but will certainly reconsider the matter if a clear need for one emerges later.