To ask Her Majesty’s Government why it is necessary to the welfare of children to have social workers in all young offender institutions; and why ten-and-a-half social work posts are vacant in young offender institutions and dedicated units for young women.

My Lords, local authorities have legal responsibilities to safeguard and promote the welfare of children within their area who are in need. The Government recognise the importance of social work for young people in custody. We believe this should be provided by mainstream children’s services and are actively exploring with the Department for Communities and Local Government, the Association of Directors of Children’s Services and the LGA what more we can do to ensure that local authorities fulfil their responsibilities.

My Lords, I thank the Minister for her helpful Answer. Will she now top-slice local authority funding to fill these vacancies? Local authorities have now had 11 months to act. Martin Narey, chief executive of Barnardo’s, was told in October 2009 that Ministers were redoubling their efforts, and yet half the posts are vacant. When will these children receive the help that they need and have a right to?

My Lords, the noble Earl raises a very important point. I reassure him that children in institutions where the pilot social workers are no longer in post receive support from staff under arrangements that are in place in the institutions. The DCSF and the YJB supported a pilot to look at the benefits of placing social workers in YOIs. Half of the local authorities working with YOIs have kept on the social workers because they have seen the benefits of the pilots. I am very keen that we should do all we can to ensure that the benefits of the pilot are realised.

My Lords, in those YOIs that do not have a social worker what arrangements are being made for young people who were formerly in care regarding where they should be resettled and the level of support they should receive when they leave custody? These children are one of the main focuses that the social workers are supposed to have, as is working in partnership with other professionals.

I want to be absolutely clear. This is a very important issue and it is absolutely right and proper that young people in YOIs get proper support—particularly children who were in care or who are just leaving care. Their home local authority has a duty to ensure that their needs are met even when they are in detention, and this includes visiting them when they are in detention. The responsibilities are very clear. The Local Government Association is very much opposed to top-slicing for this kind of provision. We are doing what we can to work with the association of children’s directors and others to ensure that this provision is properly met.

Can the Minister define what a half of a social worker is? Is it someone who is half-qualified, or someone who works half-time, or someone who works as well as the ones who should have been looking after the girls who were abused by their father?

My Lords, it is well recognised by those who work in HR that when someone works half-time you would calculate that as half a post.

My Lords, can my noble friend explore a bit further the issue of collaboration at a local level? We know that children’s services are responsible for young people in their area. How does that collaboration work with the youth offending teams, for example, and also with the education services for young people?

My Lords, there are already in local authorities youth offending teams and established safeguarding staff in young offender institutions, as well as established working practices. The pilot was looking at whether, when you place a social worker in an institution, it improves outcomes for young people. The National Children's Bureau evaluated this and showed that it did make a difference. Half of the institutions that participated in the pilot have gone on to keep the social workers in place, so it is possible for local authorities to continue to fund these social workers. We know that it is something that the Association of Directors of Children's Services was keen to take forward with all local authorities across the country, which has not been possible. There is a practical way forward. I am delighted that noble Lords are concerned and want to see something happening.

My Lords, does the Minister agree that, if the local authorities themselves had to pay for the individual costs of the young offender in those institutions, it might concentrate their minds rather more to provide adequate services in each institution?

The noble Baroness makes a very interesting point. The debate about how you should fund specialist provision and the debate between central and local government and where local accountability should lie rages on. What matters is that institutions are providing the best possible safeguarding, as the inspector of the Prison Service made clear in its report, and that we put the interests of children first and move on with this.

My Lords, in response to a Written Question last January, David Hanson said that one step being taken to reduce the number of child deaths in custody was the introduction of social workers. Does the Minister agree that by leaving more than half the social worker posts vacant, the likelihood of avoidable deaths has increased?

My Lords, it is totally unacceptable for any local authority not to honour its duty to safeguard and promote the welfare of children. If that means doing it by placing a post in a YOI, that is a good way in which to do it but, if that does not happen, local authorities cannot avoid their duty.

My Lords, a number of excellent—indeed outstanding—charities work in this area. How closely are the Government working with those charities to ensure the best possible outcome for these young people?

My Lords, we always welcome working with the charities sector, whether it is Barnardo’s, the National Children’s Bureau, or others who have great expertise in this area.

My Lords, is the Minister aware that the suggestion made by the noble Baroness, Lady Howe, was made in the Woolf report 18 years ago and repeated in the report that we debated last week in this House? Can we get a move on in that direction?

My Lords, how funding is divided and whether it goes through the Youth Justice Board is a very contentious issue. We have to be very careful about incentivising local authorities to abdicate responsibility.