Written question asked by Andrew Smith (Labour) on Tuesday, 7 June 2005, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Tuesday, 14 June 2005. It was answered by Liam Byrne (Labour) on Wednesday, 15 June 2005 on behalf of the Department of Health.

Hospitals (Learning Disabilities)

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what hospital facilities were available (a) in the last financial year and (b) in each of the previous five years to meet the needs of people with learning disabilities (i) across the NHS and (ii) in the private sector.

Answer: [holding answer 14 June 2005]: The national health service and private sector provides a variety of hospital facilities for people with learning disabilities. The figures available for NHS facilities are shown in the following table. Hospital inpatient activity: average daily number of available beds for learning disabled people; NHS trusts in England Learning disabilities: 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 Children: short stay — — 281 205 268 229 Children: long stay — — 95 70 141 59 Other ages: secure unit — — 431 407 508 514 Other ages: short stay — — 1,323 1,374 1,117 1,210 Other ages: long stay — — 4,186 3,639 3,003 3,199 Total 6,834 6,834 6,316 5,694 5,038 5,212 Source: KH03 return, Department of Health With regard to private sector facilities, on 31 March 2004, the Healthcare Commission identified 46 private sector facilities registered as independent hospitals providing 968 beds for people with learning disabilities. Source: The Healthcare Commission, 2004

Secondary information