Funding amounting to £0.850 million was made available to the Western Health Board in 1997 for the provision of additional residential-respite places and day care places for all mental handicap services including autism services. Details of the precise services to be put in place in the Western Health Board region are agreed by the regional mental handicap co-ordinating committee in line with the priority needs which have been identified for the region. The committee is representative of the Western Health Board, the voluntary service providers and parents and families of persons with a mental handicap in the Western Health Board area. No particular amount of funding was allocated for autism services.