In Today's Papers

By Amy Taylor, Clare Jerrom and Alex Dobson.
Letwin proposes offshore centre for refugees
Thousands of asylum seekers who would be transferred to an offshore centre under Conservative proposals announced by the shadow home secretary yesterday.
Speaking at the Conservative conference, Oliver Letwin outlined plans to set up a quota system to limit the number of asylum seekers. The scheme would involve 20,000 refugees, pre-selected by the United Nations, to be allowed to live in Britain.
Those who do not come under the quota would be sent to an offshore centre "a long way away" while their claims are processed.

Source:- Financial Times Wednesday 8 October page 4
Labour guilty of race bias over poll candidate
An independent inquiry into the Labour party's selection procedure was called for last night after an employment tribunal found it guilty of racial discrimination against an Asian election candidate.
Raghib Ahsan took the party to a tribunal alleging racial discrimination after he was rejected as a candidate for Birmingham council three years running. The 57-year-old was a councillor for the city's Sparkhill ward during the 1990s, but the party declined to allow him to stand for election in 1997, 1998 and 2000.
Yesterday the tribunal panel agreed that that Ahsan had been victimised, and called the selection process "extremely impressionistic".
Trevor Phillips, chairperson of the Commission for Racial Equality, said he would now be seeking agreement from the Labour Party to set up an independent review or candidate selection procedures.
Source:- The Daily Telegraph Wednesday 8 October page 6
Society Guardian
Far from certain
After the praise heaped on the Sure Start programme for toddlers at Labour's conference, Alison Benjamin and Kendra Inman investigate whether the rhetoric matches the reality.
Source:- Society Guardian Wednesday 8 October page 2
Hard cases, hard Casey
In the wake of a Home Office action plan being launched next week, Louise Casey, director of the antisocial behaviour unit plans to visit England's most run down estates in order to call for intensive casework and tough sanctions against "nightmare" families.
She will instruct councils, youth offending teams and the police to be firm and consistent.
The scheme will target 25,000 households that are involved in antisocial behaviour. Casey wants more visits to such families by housing officers, social workers and police to ensure offenders know that their actions will have "consequences".
Source:- Society Guardian Wednesday 8 October page 4
Hidden camera exposes malpractice in care homes
The younger brother of Donal MacIntyre has gone undercover in residential care homes and was shocked by what he uncovered.
Tadhg MacIntyre, a sports psychologist, secured jobs in homes for older people and for people with learning disabilities, in the north east of England and on the south coast.
"The worst thing was when the staff sat round the table and described how they wanted to punch clients," he said. "This happened on the first day, when I was in the home for research purposes. After that we decided to film."
Source:- Society Guardian Wednesday 8 October page 4
Cry freedom
Sir Sandy Bruce-Lockhart tells Peter Hetherington why he aims to make Labour think again about 'ratting' on its promise to give local government greater powers
Source:- Society Guardian Wednesday 8 October page 6
Mixed blessing
To protect children the government proposes combining education and social services  in councils - but which of the two departments will come out on top?
Source:- Society Guardian Wednesday 8 October page 10
Into the abyss
A huge overspend at an NHS trust has been blamed on management failures. Tash Shifrin finds it could happen elsewhere
Source:- Society Guardian Wednesday 8 October page 14
Less is more
The best small charities are innovative and inspirational.
Charity awards 2003
Source:- Society Guardian Wednesday 8 October page 15
What else can I do?
With three years' experience as a housing officer, Peter feels that at 25, he should be looking for his next step on the career ladder
Source:- Society Guardian Wednesday 8 October page 127
Scottish newspapers
Woman abused two kids
A woman was yesterday found guilty of horrific sex abuse dating back nearly 40 years.
Helen Ford abused a girl and a boy as well as giving them to paedophiles for sex at parties, the high court in Edinburgh heard. Ford began the attacks on the girl after she fostered her from a Barnardo’s home in 1964, and they continued until 1971. The boy endured the attacks between 1967 and 1971.
Sentencing was deferred until October 29 at the High Court in Kilmarnock by Lord Hardie.
Source:- Daily Record Wednesday 8 October page 4
Revealed: tagging plan for reluctant witnesses

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Electronic tagging will be forced upon reluctant witnesses to make them attend court as part of a radical overhaul of the Scottish criminal justice system.
Cathy Jamieson, the justice minister, wants to ensure trials run more smoothly by introducing tagging for witnesses who refuse to appear in court.
However, lawyers warned that moves to tag innocent witnesses could breach the European Convention of Human Rights, and may deter vital witnesses from coming forward.
Source:- The Herald Wednesday 8 October
Aid pledge to social work teams in child abuse cases
The first minister yesterday pledged to provide “all support necessary” to social work teams faced with large scale operations similar to the child abuse investigation on Lewis last week.
Seven people appeared at Stornoway Sheriff Court on Monday charged in connection with a major child abuse investigation centred on the Western Isles.
In Stornoway yesterday, Jack McConnell said it was a “difficult time” for the local community after the allegations were made public.
He said the Scottish executive wanted to ensure that day-to-day social work operations are not affected when staff are called to deal with large-scale operations in their area.
Source:- The Scotsman Wednesday 8 October
Advocate depute calls for guilty verdict in murder case
The advocate depute urged jurors to find guilty of murder a man accused of bludgeoning his friend to death.
During his closing speech in the trial of Allan Menzies, Andrew McMillan told the high court in Edinburgh that he would like them to return a verdict of guilty on all of the counts.
A psychiatrist had earlier claimed that Menzies was a paranoid schizophrenic, but was not insane at the time of the alleged attack.
Menzies claimed he killed his friend in December last year because it would grant him immortality to become a vampire.
Source:- The Scotsman Wednesday 8 October page 3
Miss X report passed to procurator fiscal
A police inquiry investigating claims that Borders social workers were aware of a signed confession of rape two years before the Miss X case came to light has resulted in a report being submitted to the procurator fiscal.
Christine Grahame, a Scottish National Party MSP, passed “disturbing” information concerning the case which she received anonymously to David Hume, the chief executive of the Scottish Borders council.
The allegation that James Mercer had admitted raping Miss X in 2000 was made to Grahame, who has called for disciplinary action to be taken against managers in the council’s care department for their handling of the case.
Mercer was jailed for 10 years after he admitted a catalogue of torture and abuse against the victim who has learning difficulties.
Source:- The Scotsman Wednesday 8 October page 5
Welsh newspapers
Hospital in Valleys ‘like nursing home’
A hospital in Ebbw Vale is so badly affected by the problem of bed blocking that it is effectively being run as a nursing home.
Patients who are medically fit for discharge currently take up all 23 beds at the hospital. But lack of money for care home placements or for adaptations to homes that would make independent living possible, mean that the patients remain blocking NHS beds within the hospital.
Source:- South Wales Argus Tuesday 7 October page 6
‘Smart’ home cares for the elderly
A half-page feature looking at a ‘smart’ home in Tredegar in south Wales that could help people suffering from dementia retain their independence for as long as possible.
The exhibition house contains the latest technology that will allow older people to remain within their own homes, and it is hoped that the technology can be used in the future to support vulnerable people and delay the need for residential care.
Source:- Western Mail Wednesday 8 October page 6
Registered sex offender jailed after being caught by police with teenage boy in his car
A convicted paedophile has been jailed for three years for abducting two schoolboys.
James Smith met the two 13-year-olds only six months after being released early from a prison term.
The court heard that Smith had begun grooming the boys after meeting them at a seaside resort and gave them money, cigarettes and alcohol.
Source:- Western Mail Wednesday 8 October page 6