Articles by Date : January 01 2003 - January 31 2003

Asylum seekers appeal to social services
Social services departments are already facing demands to support asylum seekers who are no longer eligible for support under new rules in the.... more
(20 January 2003 12:44)

Monday 20 January 2003
Head of Commission for Racial Equality is chosen. Victoria Climbie's parents complain they have not met a minister before Lord Laming's report is.... more
(20 January 2003 10:03)

Council denies obesity blocked adoption
Glasgow council has denied it refused to let a couple adopt because they were too fat, writes Nicola Barry. more
(17 January 2003 14:58)

MPs told fines for delayed discharge have few supporters
Very few people involved in health and social care support the government’s proposal to fine social services for delayed discharges from hospital,.... more
(17 January 2003 14:40)

Interview with sacked NSPCC union rep
We interview John Power, who recently won his case for unfair dismissal against the NSPCC after being sacked for leaking information to Community.... more
(17 January 2003 11:56)

news analysis of first annual report from the learning disability taskforce
Most government departments are lagging behind the department of health's pioneering work on learning difficulties, says a new report. Anabel Unity.... more
(16 January 2003 00:00)

news analysis of likelihood that ministers will set up national child protection agency
The government's scourge of social services departments is toying with proposals to transfer responsibility for child protection to a national.... more
(16 January 2003 00:00)

Organisations are too secretive
Two-thirds of visitors to Community Care’s website say their organisations do not communicate openly with the public and media. more
(16 January 2003 12:38)

Small step forward
Mencap's Fred Heddell offers a personal view of the progress made in implementing the forward-looking learning difficulties strategy Valuing People.... more
(16 January 2003 00:00)

Children in families with relative in prison suffer mental health problems
Children with a prisoner in the family are more likely to suffer from significant mental health problems, according to a report from Action for.... more
(16 January 2003 11:12)

Scrap congestion charges
Social care staff in central London face enough problems already. Inflated property prices, inadequate London weighting allowance, heavy and complex.... more
(16 January 2003 10:48)

Time to make it happen
It is nearly two years since the Valuing People white paper held out the promise of radical reform to people with learning difficulties. more
(16 January 2003 00:00)

Thursday 16 January 2003
Chancellor pledges to squeeze public sector pay. Home secretary under pressure to introduce new curbs on asylum seekers. more
(16 January 2003 10:01)

Verdict on Valuing People delivered
All areas of government should give the needs of people with learning difficulties greater priority, the Learning Disability Task Force's first.... more
(16 January 2003 00:00)

Care trusts might charge for services
Care trusts could be given powers to charge for providing residential care services under new government proposals. more
(16 January 2003 00:00)

New audit boss calls for target reduction
The new chairperson of the Audit Commission has told MPs that the numbers of targets public sector bodies are measured against should be reduced. more
(16 January 2003 00:00)

Children's charities want stronger guidance for GPs in protection cases
Children's charities are calling for a rewording of the Children Act 1989, following a court case last week involving a family doctor who failed to.... more
(16 January 2003 00:00)

Charities call for rethink on act
A number of voluntary organisations have joined forces to express "deep concern" over new legislation that came into force last week that will deny.... more
(16 January 2003 00:00)

Tameside faces court action on fees
A group of care homes in Tameside, greater Manchester, is planning to take the local authority to court over fees unless rates are increased. more
(16 January 2003 00:00)

Debate on Labour's record since it came to power
We asked if Labour has made a mess of its social care policies. more
(15 January 2003 17:14)

Milburn wins care funding case appeal
Health secretary Alan Milburn has won a legal test case over procedures used by councils to force home owners to use their property to fund.... more
(16 January 2003 00:00)

Voluntary groups' confidence in records bureau hits rock bottom
The leading membership body for the voluntary sector is calling for reform of parts of the Criminal Records Bureau after a study revealed that the.... more
(16 January 2003 00:00)

Cash boost for Scottish groups
Three organisations working with vulnerable children in Scotland are to receive a major funding boost. more
(16 January 2003 00:00)

Movement salutes leading campaigner
The learning difficulties movement has been rocked by the death of Ken Simons, one of its leading figures, at the age of 49. more
(16 January 2003 00:00)

Inquiry call over girl found dead in canal
An inquiry has been demanded into the way social workers handled the case of a five-year-old girl whose body was found last week in a canal in the.... more
(16 January 2003 00:00)

Nottinghamshire wins high praise
Nottinghamshire social services department has the potential to be one of the best-performing departments in the country, according to a recent joint.... more
(16 January 2003 00:00)

Sure Start chief fears government control could damage initiative
Just a month after the official launch of the new interdepartmental Sure Start Unit, its director has expressed concern over the effects of increased.... more
(16 January 2003 00:00)

Advert for magazine too much to stomach
A television advert portraying the neglect of an older person has resulted in 280 complaints to the Independent Television Commission. more
(16 January 2003 00:00)

Youth agency hails new standards
New government standards for the modernisation of youth services in England represent the most important development in youth work for 40 years,.... more
(16 January 2003 00:00)

Change to incapacity test needed, say GPs
Doctors in Scotland are calling for changes to be made to the way they are required to implement the Adults with Incapacity (Scotland) Act 2000. more
(16 January 2003 00:00)

Charities urge government to target and tailor alcohol treatment services
Alcohol treatment services need to be both mainstream and tailored according to age, ethnicity and other specialist needs, the government was told.... more
(16 January 2003 00:00)

Derbyshire accused of breaching deal
Unison is accusing Derbyshire Council of breaching a national agreement over pay and conditions for more than 1,000 staff in care homes for older.... more
(16 January 2003 00:00)

Guidance on risk indicators released
The government has drawn up a list of risk factors that could alert professionals to children that are in danger of developing social problems. more
(16 January 2003 00:00)

Prison suicide toll reached 12 in 2002
Twelve young offenders committed suicide in prisons in 2002, according to the latest figures published by the Howard League for Penal Reform. more
(16 January 2003 00:00)

Children suffer if relative imprisoned
Children with a prisoner in the family are more likely to suffer from significant mental health problems, according to a report from Action for.... more
(16 January 2003 00:00)

Training materials
Caring with Confidence Edited by Reba Bhaduri. From PSSRU, Dover St Building, University of Manchester M13 9PL. Tel: 0161 275 5681; fax.... more
(16 January 2003 00:00)

Testing the Limits of Foster Care
By Moira Walker, Malcolm Hill and John Triseliotis. more
(16 January 2003 00:00)

Supporting Families
By Ruth Gardner. more
(16 January 2003 00:00)

Government told people with learning difficulties must be higher priority
All areas of government need to give the needs of people with learning difficulties greater priority, the government taskforce’s first annual report.... more
(15 January 2003 00:00)

Culture and cruelty
Female genital mutilation is illegal in the UK and can trigger a child protection plan. Yet it is still widely practised among communities from some.... more
(16 January 2003 00:00)

Hopes and fears
Parents whose children are subject to child protection procedures are among the most difficult service users to consult, and they are often the.... more
(16 January 2003 00:00)

Trust in us
A year ago, Woman's Trust was facing closure. Now it has won a Community Care award and the future for this mental health project is looking.... more
(16 January 2003 00:00)

Moving targets
Pragmatic new measures have replaced the government's doomed 10-year strategy to attack the nation's drug problem. Natalie Valios gauges their likely.... more
(16 January 2003 00:00)

London congestion charge could hit staffing levels, warns union
Unison is calling on London mayor Ken Livingstone to postpone the introduction of congestion charges next month until an assessment can be carried.... more
(16 January 2003 00:00)

Disability Rights Commission condemns 'voucher payments'
A woman with learning difficulties who was paid in gift vouchers for five years by a major high street newsagent could have a claim for back pay,.... more
(16 January 2003 00:00)

Inspectors worried over prison racism
Race relations in Chelmsford prison and young offenders institution need "urgent attention", according to a report by the prisons inspectorate.... more
(16 January 2003 00:00)

Mad Pride founder Shaughnessy dies
A mental health service user survivor who was one of the founders of activists' organisation Mad Pride has died, aged 40. more
(16 January 2003 00:00)

Warming trend
Millions of households cannot afford to heat their homes. But, as Marie duQuesnay reports, there are agencies out there operating imaginative schemes.... more
(16 January 2003 00:00)

McTernan on Politics
The government is tackling the causes of crime. If only it were more upfront about it. more
(16 January 2003 00:00)

Drugs fill the gap
The association between inequality and drug abuse is being ignored by the government. Instead, the responsibility to find solutions is partly falling.... more
(16 January 2003 00:00)