Articles by Date : May 01 2003 - May 31 2003

Study of exclusions loses sample
A government-funded study of the fate of young people permanently excluded from school lost touch with a quarter of its sample within two years of.... more
(02 May 2003 11:17)

Child care: low pay message hits home
Child care workers are paid substantially less than others with similar qualifications in other fields, according to new research for the Department.... more
(02 May 2003 11:14)

Poverty blues spoil trust fund welcome
Moves in last month’s Budget to make it easier for lone parents to move into work have been welcomed by child welfare organisations. more
(02 May 2003 11:12)

Safe house set for closure
The UK’s only safe house for children who have been trafficked is to close down, it has been announced by West Sussex County Council. more
(02 May 2003 11:05)

New move to boost child protection by hospitals
All hospital staff should have access to child protection advice around the clock and a child protection protocol should be in place under new.... more
(02 May 2003 11:02)

Childline study is cue for fresh action on bullying in schools
More than two-thirds of secondary school children in England are reluctant to tell teachers they are being bullied despite the mandatory introduction.... more
(02 May 2003 11:03)

Bid to beat mental health stigma
Embedding Connexions personal advisers in the mental health system could improve services for young people. more
(02 May 2003 10:59)

Alarms sound over surge in custodial sentences
There has been an 800 per cent increase in the number of under-15s sentenced to custody over the past decade despite the government’s pledge to limit.... more
(02 May 2003 10:58)

Child care staff need funding
The government’s strategy of expanding pre-school care for three to five-year-olds is endorsed by the Institute for Education’s study confirming its.... more
(02 May 2003 10:56)

What justice for young people?
An eightfold increase in the number of children being locked up by the courts during a decade when recorded youth crime was actually falling, as.... more
(02 May 2003 10:55)

Friday 2 May 2003
Mother who suffocated babies refused help, court told. Cannabis may kill 30,000 every year. more
(02 May 2003 10:00)

Lords rule both parents can be held accountable for harming child
Where, in proceedings for a care order under the Children Act 1989, the court could not decide which parent had caused "significant harm" to the.... more
(01 May 2003 17:29)

Debate on how agencies can ensure people experience a 'good death'
We asked people for their views on whether agencies are sensitive to the preparations needed to ensure people experience a 'good death'. more
(01 May 2003 16:49)

Could do better?
A decline in educational results forlooked-after children has spurred the government to lower its targets. But is this measure actually doing a.... more
(01 May 2003 00:00)

Making up for lost times
Changes are at last on the way for people with dementia. Ruth Winchester finds hope for those who need to access treatment, but the bill for.... more
(01 May 2003 00:00)

Uniform Approach
Public concern about the antisocial behaviour of some young people is often accompanied by a call to bring back national service. Former conscript.... more
(01 May 2003 00:00)

Night caretaker
The Victoria Climbie Report recommended ending the responsibility of out-of-hours teams for providing emergency protection for children. Lecturer and.... more
(01 May 2003 00:00)

Learning from experience
Independent social care consultant and ex-inspector John Burton argues that the National Care Standards Commission has failed service users, while.... more
(01 May 2003 00:00)

Form-filling gets in the way of care
Nine forms are needed for a looked-after child placement but it could be streamlined to just two, argues Alan Connell. more
(01 May 2003 00:00)

Long hours affect staff mental health
Nearly half of all employees work such long hours that they neglect aspects of their lives which can protect them from mental health problems. more
(01 May 2003 00:00)

Community Fund cash proves critical
The Community Fund is the most important source of funding for many poor communities in England, according to research published last week. more
(01 May 2003 00:00)

Autism charity warns special needs cuts would break local council rules
The National Autistic Society has warned that the government would be breaching local authority rules if it tried to cut special educational needs.... more
(01 May 2003 00:00)

Council underlines stance on truancy
Carmarthenshire Council has threatened to prosecute more parents who fail to send their children to school after a mother's appeal against a jail.... more
(01 May 2003 00:00)

Meningitis link with behaviour problems
Babies who have meningitis are more likely to develop behavioural problems as teenagers than other babies, new research suggests. more
(01 May 2003 00:00)

Scottish ads seek to sign up graduates
Advertisements will appear in the Scottish press this week for graduates to be fast-tracked into retraining as children and family social workers in.... more
(01 May 2003 00:00)

GPs' paperwork dispute leads to benefits delay for disabled people
Disability organisations have raised fears about delays to disability living allowance claims after GPs refused to complete a form. more
(01 May 2003 00:00)

Nottingham home 'should have shut'
Nottingham Council has denied it was ordered by the National Care Standards Commission to close a children's home where a girl was later found.... more
(01 May 2003 00:00)

Abuse case staff face anxious wait
Social work staff at the centre of an inquiry into a woman with learning difficulties who was sexually abused are being put under stress because of.... more
(01 May 2003 00:00)

Connexions pay strikes to resume
Five hundred Connexions staff in Greater Merseyside are set to go on strike for the third time this month over new pay and working arrangements. more
(01 May 2003 00:00)

Detention does not harm job prospects
People who are admitted to hospital under the Mental Health Act 1983 do not suffer reduced job prospects as a result, according to a survey released.... more
(01 May 2003 00:00)

Gay partners win consultation rights
A legal ruling that a same-sex partner could be a patient's nearest relative under the Mental Health Act 1983 may have wider implications for.... more
(01 May 2003 00:00)

news analysis of imminent green paper on children at risk
Social services and charities are hoping the imminent green paper on children at risk broadens responsibility for service provision beyond social.... more
(01 May 2003 00:00)

Cafcass has presided over decline in child welfare services, experts say
The welfare service to children in the legal system has deteriorated since responsibility for representing their interests passed to the Children and.... more
(01 May 2003 00:00)

Workplace 'remains hostile to disability'
Discrimination in the workplace accounted for more than half the cases dealt with by the Disability Rights Commission last year. more
(01 May 2003 00:00)

Ex-drug addicts lack resettlement help
Rehabilitation agency Nacro is concerned that there is insufficient government funding to cope with the sheer scale of the current shortfall in.... more
(01 May 2003 00:00)

Tax credits One in five fail to get money on time
The government has admitted that 800,000 families who applied for the child and working tax credits had still not received their money this week. more
(01 May 2003 00:00)

Buy chocolate to keep fit urge stars
Chocolate manufacturer Cadbury has come under fire for urging children to buy chocolate bars and exchange tokens for free sports equipment for their.... more
(01 May 2003 00:00)

Cash threat to Scots church services
More than 2,000 social services jobs may be under threat in the Church of Scotland. more
(01 May 2003 00:00)

'Local partnerships need more time'
A regeneration expert has warned that the government could begin "going backwards" if it was to implement the recommendations of a critical report on.... more
(01 May 2003 00:00)

'Appeals system needs reform'
Asylum and refugee organisations have urged the government to reform the asylum appeals process in evidence presented to MPs. more
(01 May 2003 00:00)

Prostitution study points to alienation
The problems of young women open to sexual exploitation are so complex that it is difficult to identify one factor that leads to their vulnerability,.... more
(01 May 2003 00:00)

First forcible return of Afghan refugees
About 20 failed Afghan asylum seekers were forcibly repatriated this week by the government despite concerns from refugee organisations that the.... more
(01 May 2003 00:00)

New integrated service for older people triggers policy confusion
A new service for older people similar to the Care Direct initiative already being piloted in the South West is being developed by the Department for.... more
(01 May 2003 00:00)

TV portrayal upsets social work body
The British Association of Social Workers expressed dismay this week at the portrayal of a social worker in the BBC's Eastenders . more
(01 May 2003 00:00)

Proposal to send children in care to boarding schools is back on agenda
A controversial government proposal to offer boarding school places to children in care has been revived. more
(01 May 2003 00:00)

New type of early years staff needed
A new type of worker with equivalent training to teachers is required to staff the growing number of services that combine education and care for.... more
(01 May 2003 00:00)

Quitting social care mooted by many
Eighty-one per cent of visitors to Community Care 's website say long hours and low pay in social care have forced them to consider leaving the.... more
(01 May 2003 00:00)

Children of Disabled Parents
By Tony Newman. more
(01 May 2003 00:00)

Moving on from Community Care
By Lorna Easterbrook. more
(01 May 2003 00:00)

MP calls for resignations over criminal checks failures
The Criminal Records Bureau is failing to protect vulnerable children and adults and yet still nobody has taken proper responsibility for its.... more
(01 May 2003 14:37)