Articles by Date : January 01 2002 - January 31 2002

Protecting adults from abuse
Social services departments in England are making progress in developing a multi-agency strategy to protect vulnerable adults from abuse, according.... more
(24 January 2002 00:00)

Taking a count of vulnerable children
The effective collection of data on the number and location of vulnerable children is a highly pertinent issue as government guidance has called for.... more
(24 January 2002 00:00)

Have your say
This week's Have your say debate focuses on the government's learning difficulties white paper Valuing People and whether it will prove to.... more
(16 January 2002 10:59)

Private gain
In a major new study of private fostering published this week, Bob Holman uncovers the diverse circumstances that lead people to foster children.... more
(31 January 2002 00:00)

A Parent's Guide to Down Syndrome - Toward a Brighter Future
By Siegfried M Pueschel. Paul H Brookes Publishing Co £17.95 ISBN 1 55766 452 8 This is a disappointing book. more
(31 January 2002 00:00)

Research into practice
Brian Morgan looks at research that argues the emotional well-being of looked-after children needs as much attention as their physical health. more
(31 January 2002 00:00)

This week's writer is a specialist social worker in a palliative care team
Monday I phone Daniella, one of my clients, to see how she is. more
(31 January 2002 00:00)

Cinderella service needs headlines
Yvonne Roberts - Dissatisfied social services users need the same kind of lobbying power as NHS patients. more
(31 January 2002 00:00)

Dousing the flames
Alison Miller reports on how the winner of the Community Care Awards 2001 young offenders category works with the fire service to give young.... more
(31 January 2002 00:00)

Is there a card left to play?
Care leavers and staff from Hampshire Council's children and family services. more
(31 January 2002 00:00)

Give Brown some credit
Gary Vaux does the sums on the new pension credit due for 2003 and finds five million set to gain. more
(31 January 2002 00:00)

news analysis of government crack down on disruptive pupils
The government has said it will crack down on disruptive pupils. But where will that leave provision for the excluded? Sally Gillen gauges reaction.... more
(31 January 2002 17:12)

Directors back wider family role in decisions on child care and protection
Family group conferences (FGCs)should be used by all local authorities, according to the Association of Directors of Social Services president Mike.... more
(31 January 2002 00:00)

Employee sacked over sending e-mail
An employee of children's charity the NSPCC who was suspended for sending a "confidential" e-mail to Community Care has been sacked for gross.... more
(31 January 2002 00:00)

Trade in misery
The trafficking of young people into the UK represents a tough challenge for police, local authorities and the judiciary. Things would be made.... more
(31 January 2002 00:00)

Star wars
Performance ratings for social services departments are set to be more transparent than ever thanks to Alan Milburn's proposals for star-ratings,.... more
(31 January 2002 00:00)

No vision and no urgency
Social services consultant Keith Fletcher feels that the Welsh task force on recruitment was a missed opportunity. more
(31 January 2002 00:00)

Star rating is right
The difficulty of applying fair standards to all departments, the lack of resources, local factors... more
(31 January 2002 00:00)

Behind the headlines
Our regular panel comments on a topic in the news. Since 1998 nine children have been killed by their fathers during contact visits, according.... more
(31 January 2002 00:00)

Reflections
Support, I feel, is an undervalued word. I have always felt that carers never get the support necessary, and I don't just mean professional support. more
(31 January 2002 00:00)

Support in the round
A voluntary circle of support has helped Helena Borodzicz to take control of her own money and her own life. My earliest memory is of being.... more
(31 January 2002 00:00)

Good relationship
I have rarely found social workers and advocates to have a difficult relationship (Letters, 17 January). more
(31 January 2002 00:00)

Black carers suffer insufficient support
The myth that people from ethnic minority backgrounds can "look after their own" with little assistance from statutory service providers still.... more
(31 January 2002 00:00)

NSPCC muddle confuses inquiry
Children's charity the NSPCC has defended its record in the Victoria Climbie case following further allegations that it interfered with its.... more
(31 January 2002 00:00)

Protect children from parental abuse
The Children Act 1989 has gone too far in promoting the interests of parents over children, according to two-thirds of visitors to Community Care's.... more
(31 January 2002 00:00)

Anti-poverty groups clash over campaign
A call by the Church Action on Poverty charity encouraging people to live on the minimum wage during Lent has been criticised by another.... more
(31 January 2002 00:00)

Four new asylum centres to be built
The government intends to build four new accommodation centres to hold 3,000 asylum seekers. Each would hold 750 people. more
(31 January 2002 00:00)

Residents' health highlighted in study
Less than two-thirds of people in care homes are visited by relatives or friends every week compared with 81 per cent in private households,.... more
(31 January 2002 00:00)

Dover gets the first induction centre
The Home Office opened its first induction centre for asylum applicants last week in an attempt to reduce the number of asylum seekers being placed.... more
(31 January 2002 00:00)

Community Forum members start work
The government fulfilled its neighbourhood renewal strategy commitment to establish a community working group this week with the announcement of.... more
(31 January 2002 00:00)

Radical overhaul of child care requested
Daycare Trust chairperson Lisa Harker has urged the government to use its current review of child care to set a new vision for children's services.... more
(31 January 2002 00:00)

Private member's bill goes to Lords
A bill intended to strengthen current disability legislation was presented to the House of Lords last week. more
(31 January 2002 00:00)

Charity challenges rough sleepers count
A homelessness charity has produced evidence to cast doubt on the official government figures for people sleeping rough. more
(31 January 2002 00:00)

Brighton praised for integration
The most important task for Brighton and Hove Council is to ensure that the planned establishment of a care trust leads "directly to better.... more
(31 January 2002 00:00)

Chief inspector in Wales calls for new effort on morale and retention
The chief inspector of social services in Wales has warned of increasing difficulties in recruiting and retaining staff in the country. more
(31 January 2002 00:00)

Screened out
Unlike policemen, firemen, nurses and garbage collectors, social workers have failed to make a major impact on the nation's television schedules. more
(31 January 2002 00:00)

Essex looks at using animals in therapy
Essex Council social services department and North East Essex Mental Health NHS Trust have set up a working group to look at pet-facilitated.... more
(31 January 2002 00:00)

NSPCC wants tough new child care rules
The parents of an eight-month-old boy who died from a severe brain injury after being shaken by his childminder have joined with the NSPCC to.... more
(31 January 2002 00:00)

Inspectors voice Lincolnshire doubts
Lincolnshire is developing innovative and creative models of joint services for older people, but "considerable work" is needed in a number of key.... more
(31 January 2002 00:00)

Young offenders left in lurch at the age of 21, argues new prisons chief
The cut-off age for services to young offenders should be increased from 21 to 25, according to the chief inspector of prisons. more
(31 January 2002 00:00)

MPs review abuse allegation system
The Home Affairs Committee has launched an inquiry into possible miscarriages of justice resulting from investigations into alleged abuse in.... more
(31 January 2002 00:00)

Plea to make spirituality a priority
More should be done to address the spiritual needs of people with learning difficulties, according to a report released this week. more
(31 January 2002 00:00)

Teachers' award may dent other services
Local government organisations have criticised the government's increase in teachers' pay. more
(31 January 2002 00:00)

Children in care used in drugs tests
Children in care homes in the Irish Republic were used for vaccination trials during a 13-year period, the opening session of a public inquiry was.... more
(31 January 2002 00:00)

Same sex couples lose out on grants
A post-graduate social work student has accused the General Social Care Council of discrimination against lesbian and gay couples She is angry.... more
(31 January 2002 00:00)

Age Concern attacks government's free nursing care policy as 'shambles'
Older people's charity Age Concern has called for an inquiry by the Health Select Committee into the implementation of free nursing care. more
(31 January 2002 00:00)

Chief prisons inspector calls for services to offenders over 21
The cut off age for services to young offenders should be increased from 21 to 25, according to the new chief inspector of prisons, writes Clare.... more
(30 January 2002 12:06)

Local authorities given two week ultimatum by care home owners
Private care home owners have given Scottish local authorities a two-week deadline to agree the additional charges for residential care or face a.... more
(30 January 2002 14:05)

Call for inquiry into care of older people at home in Cardiff
An independent inquiry has been called for in the wake of serious concerns about the way that a residential home for older people in Cardiff has.... more
(30 January 2002 16:29)

A daily summary of social care stories from the main newspapers
By Clare Jerrom, Reg McKay and Alex Dobson. more
(31 January 2002 10:05)