Articles by Date : July 01 2006 - July 31 2006

Data-sharing deal for health checks
Social services' and doctors' leaders in Wales appear to have reached an agreement over data sharing which will allow people with learning.... more
(27 July 2006 00:00)

Cornwall Council plans cuts to services for people with learning difficulties
Cornwall Council wants to cut services for people with learning difficulties as part of proposals to tackle a £3.6 million funding shortfall in adult.... more
(31 July 2006 11:28)

Failed asylum seekers denied NHS hospital services
Failed asylum seekers have no right to hospital services except in an A&E department. Unable to pay for treatment, they are left ill and in pain in.... more
(27 July 2006 00:00)

People with learning difficulties study for qualification in storytelling
In the first project of its kind, a group of people with learning difficulties are studying for a qualification in storytelling while improving their.... more
(27 July 2006 00:00)

Cornwall abuse hospital to close
The hospital at the centre of the Cornwall learning difficulties abuse scandal is to close. Cornwall Council plans to move people from Budock.... more
(27 July 2006 00:00)

Residents 'trapped' in former NHS units denied move into community
Many people with learning difficulties in residential care are being "bypassed" in the government's drive to move people into the community. more
(27 July 2006 00:00)

Concerns stoked over scale of sexual abuse in single-sex mental health wards
A patient safety watchdog has revealed a worryingly high incidence of sexual assault in mental health wards in England and Wales. However, as Sally.... more
(27 July 2006 00:00)

NHS to miss key target for children
The NHS is set to fail a key target to deliver a comprehensive child and adolescent mental health service. more
(27 July 2006 00:00)

Delay prompts call for full consultation
The government has been urged to carry out a full consultation on its planned amendments to the Mental Health Act 1983 after it failed to table the.... more
(27 July 2006 00:00)

Advocacy provision is patchy in England
One-to-one advocacy provision for older people is thin on the ground and unevenly distributed across England, a national mapping exercise has found. more
(27 July 2006 00:00)

Councils step up warnings of migrant pressures on resources
Local authorities warned yesterday that the government’s failure to produce accurate figures on numbers of immigrant workers threatens to leave them.... more
(31 July 2006 09:57)

Young people in custody overlooked in child protection agenda
The government is promoting child protection with gusto, but not for those young people in custody, writes Barry Goldson more
(27 July 2006 00:00)

Is Big Brother a tool of abuse?
"Big Brother holds a camera up to the lives and weaknesses of the little people and hides the enormous cynicism of those controlling them" more
(27 July 2006 00:00)

Where does the Cornwall Abuse Inquiry leave the No Secrets guidance?
No Secrets is far from perfect but is it as weak as the Cornwall scandal seems to suggest, asks Kathryn Stone more
(27 July 2006 00:00)

Why weren't the police brought in when Cornwall abuse cases came to light?
If you were tied up in your home it wouldn't be "inappropriate practice", it would be a crime, says Joanna Perry more
(27 July 2006 00:00)

Cornwall abuse cases highlight need for guidance on social care whistleblowing
The Cornwall cases cast light on where complaints systems need to be improved so that abuse of this kind can be eliminated, say Sarah Baalham more
(27 July 2006 00:00)

Cornwall abuse cases highlight bad practice in use of benefits
Bad practice in the use of benefits in Cornwall is part of the wider problem, say Gary Vaux more
(27 July 2006 00:00)

Council proposes priority groups
Children's home and domiciliary care staff would be the next groups to face compulsory registration, under recommendations to ministers from the.... more
(27 July 2006 00:00)

Partial start for new funding formula
Elements of the controversial Supporting People distribution formula have been applied to the programme's funding for the first time. more
(27 July 2006 00:00)

Unison urges employers to pay staff registration fees for care council
Unison is to mount a campaign to ensure that social care organisations pay their employees’ fees to register with the General Social Care Council. more
(31 July 2006 09:25)

Day centre axes writing course for people with learning difficulties
Brian Griffin has much to thank his day centre for but now managers have axed a course that inspired him more
(27 July 2006 00:00)

Glasgow care staff set for big pay rise
Care staff in Glasgow are likely to receive a substantial pay increase under a council-wide workforce review, but it is unclear whether it will lead.... more
(27 July 2006 00:00)

'Stress on services' behind wave of assaults on mental health staff
Staff working in NHS mental health and learning difficulty services suffered 120 physical assaults a day last year, official figures reveal. more
(27 July 2006 00:00)

Home Office plan sparks fears of an increase in prison places for children
No more prison places should be created for children under government plans to extend the secure estate by 8,000 places, a leading penal reform.... more
(27 July 2006 00:00)

Scholes case will go to Europe if needed
The mother of a 16-year-old boy who died in custody says she will take her fight for a public inquiry into his death to European courts if her latest.... more
(27 July 2006 00:00)

Planned investment critical to long term success of extended services
On-going funding is essential to the success of extended services in schools and children’s centres, inspectors and campaigners warned this week. more
(28 July 2006 17:03)

Advocacy and older people - special report
Older people – along with the rest of the general public - do not know what advocacy is and as a result are unlikely to request it, according to a.... more
(28 July 2006 00:00)

Child and adolescent mental health: special report
One in 10 children are known to suffer from a mental health problem, so news this week that the NHS would fail to meet a key child mental health.... more
(28 July 2006 16:14)

Mixed results at academy schools
Pupil performance is mixed in city academies, the sponsored schools that have replaced failing schools in disadvantaged areas, according to.... more
(28 July 2006 15:13)

Prison population set to rocket
The government has been accused of creating a “Gulag Britain” after Home Office figures showed the prison population could reach more than 100,000.... more
(28 July 2006 15:03)

Wiltshire Council staff under pressure over cuts in services
Adult services staff in Wiltshire are being placed under huge stress by the council’s cuts to services, Unison has claimed. more
(28 July 2006 13:23)

Minimum fostering allowances for England announced
New minimum allowances for foster carers in England, starting at £100 a week for the youngest children, were announced by the government today. more
(27 July 2006 11:09)

Mental health services criticised on tube killing
Mental health services were found yesterday to have failed to assess the risk of discharging a man with a serious personality disorder who carried.... more
(28 July 2006 09:54)

Nicola Smith - new learning disabilities 'tsar'
Co-national director for learning disabilities Nicola Smith sees her task as keeping the NHS on its toes and moving people out of residential care..... more
(20 July 2006 00:00)

Strategy for end-of-life care planned
A new government strategy for end-of-life care in England will look at funding for hospices, choice for patients and quality of care. more
(27 July 2006 15:57)

Social services urged to plan for flu pandemic
Social services in England will receive guidance later this year on how to deal with flu outbreaks. more
(27 July 2006 12:28)

Act to create Welsh older people's commissioner
Legislation to establish a champion for older people in Wales received royal assent on Tuesday. more
(27 July 2006 11:01)

Cash initiative aims to encourage more foster parents
The government is hoping to encourage more people to consider fostering vulnerable children by introducing a national minimum allowance for carers..... more
(27 July 2006 10:14)

Question from Community Care - The impact of the independent living fund
Click on the headline to go through to the full article more
(27 July 2006 09:23)

The impact of the independent living fund
The scheme that paved the way for direct payments programmes is nearly 20 years old. Now Melanie Henwood and Bob Hudson are reviewing the.... more
(27 July 2006 00:00)

Question from Community Care - Children's rights officers and advocates put into action the views of young people
Click on the headline to go through to the full article more
(27 July 2006 09:04)

Children's rights officers and advocates put into action the views of young people
Children's rights officers and advocates are in pole position when it comes to translating young people's views into action, writes Steve Lowe more
(27 July 2006 00:00)

Doctors failing to identify bipolar disorder
Doctors are failing to recognise manic depression despite it being the most common mental illness, the National Institute for Health and Clinical.... more
(26 July 2006 09:58)

Wiltshire Council consults with service users over care rationing
Wiltshire Council is to launch a major consultation with service users over plans to ration social care and cut the costs of transporting people to.... more
(26 July 2006 08:40)

Too many children detained for too long at immigration centre, say charities
The number of children detained in Yarl’s Wood immigration removal centre for long periods is “truly shocking”, the No Place for a Child coalition of.... more
(26 July 2006 08:27)

Half employers won't pay registration fees for residential and domiciliary staff
Half of employers would not pay the registration fees of residential and domiciliary care staff despite endemic low pay in the sector, the General.... more
(26 July 2006 08:17)

White Papers
Details of government White Papers more
(25 July 2006 15:27)

Social care funding down and referrals up as effect of NHS financial woes deepens
More than a third of NHS trusts in financial deficit have withdrawn funding from services jointly agreed or funded with social care, according to a.... more
(25 July 2006 08:18)

New chief inspector appointed
Commission for Social Care Inspection director of inspection, regulation and review Paul Snell has been appointed today as its new chief inspector. more
(25 July 2006 12:23)

Possible youth justice role for army revealed
The government is considering using organisations outside the youth justice system to manage young people at risk of offending. more
(25 July 2006 11:52)