asked Her Majesty's Government:

What assessment the Department for Communities and Local Government has made of the ability of small unitary authorities to commission specialist services and facilities, such as special schools and fostering and adoption services. [HL593]

The Department for Communities and Local Government has not made any assessment of this issue.

However, the existing smallest unitary authorities (those with a population less than 120,000) are achieving good standards of service delivery for children's services and adult social care, and most have achieved a three or four-star rating overall in the comprehensive performance assessment for 2006.