To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what proportion of his Department's funding was allocated to the Children's Fund for youth crime prevention in the last 12 month period for which information is available. (279227)

I have been asked to reply.

Up to 2005-06 there was a requirement for Children's Fund Partnerships to allocate 25 per cent. of their expenditure to youth crime projects. The total funding for the Children's Fund for the period 2005-06 was £146 million. Therefore, £36.5 million of these funds were allocated to youth crime prevention. In 2006-07 the requirement of the 25 per cent. quota was discontinued. Since April 2008 funding has been distributed to local authorities and pooled with other funding via the Area Based Grant. Directing funding through local authorities gives local areas the freedom and flexibility to base spending decisions on local circumstances and the needs of local communities.