A summary of social care news

Children given e-mail warning

Children in Hampshire are being warned of the dangers of being
stalked by paedophiles on the internet in a new leaflet produced by
the police.

More than 100,00 children will be given the leaflet which warns
them to always tell their parents before meeting a stranger through
the internet, and to take an adult with them.

Source:- The Independent Saturday 10 March page 7

Don’t be paranoid, parents told

A controversial book says many parents have obsessive fears for
the safety of their children from the threat of paedophiles. The
book written by Frank Furedi, a reader in sociology at Reading
University, argues that parents should be willing to take more
risks with their children.

Furedi says that parents’ obsession can be more damaging to
their children than the risks themselves. He says that parents
should be wary of experts, and tells the government not to meddle
in the family.

Source:- The Observer Sunday 11 March page 13

Single mothers get IT call-up

Prime minister Tony Blair is set to launch the next stage of the
New Deal by finding IT jobs for single mothers. The ‘Ambition IT’
scheme, which will be contained in a green paper published on
Wednesday, will give priority to single mothers and people from
ethnic minorities.

It will form part of the government’s drive to reduce the
jobless figure below the million mark.

Source:- The Observer Sunday 11 March page 13

Jobless to fall below 1 million after 26
years

The figure for the number of people unemployed is expected to
fall below a million for the first time in 26 years this week. The
number will be the lowest since 1975.

New jobs in the service industries, especially in information
technology, account for the fall. It is good news for Labour just
before a probable election.

Source:- Sunday Telegraph 11 March page 1

‘Wide’ verbal abuse of the mentally ill

A new survey shows that most young people admit they have hurled
abuse at people they think have a mental health problem.

The findings produced by Opinion Leader Research were that two
thirds of 16 to 24-year-olds considered it wrong to use racist
language, but thought it was acceptable to call people “schizo” or
“psycho”.

A £1 million government campaign to challenge the stigma
attached to mental health problems is to be launched this week.

Source:- The Guardian Monday 12 Match page 5

Scottish newspapers

Children of poor at greatest risk on the
roads

Children from poorer backgrounds are six times more likely to be
injured or killed in a road accident than those from affluent
areas, according to research released today.

David White and Robert Raeside of Edinburgh’s Napier
University will present their findings to a road safety congress
being opened by Lord Macdonald, minister for transport, in Glasgow
today. Their research is based on statistics from Lothian and
Borders police – the first force to record victims’
postcode details separately. For every 10,000 inhabitants in the
poorest areas, 50 children aged between five and 11 were killed or
injured crossing the roads compared with seven in the more affluent
areas. The survey results support similar research carried out in
Yorkhill Hospital, Glasgow, last year.

The authors believe the survey’s results will be
replicated throughout Britain, and will argue that poorer areas
should be targeted in terms of road safety resources.

Source:- The Herald Monday 12 March page 9