Wednesday 13 August 2003

By Amy Taylor, Clare Jerrom and Amy Taylor.
No guilt for working mothers who pay for childcare
Babies looked after by nannies do just as well at school as those
who are looked after by their mothers, and those placed in
nurseries could perform even better, according to new
research.
Other findings from the biggest ever study of the effects of
working mothers on children showed that children who are left with
relatives do comparatively worse at school.
However, the study by the University of Bristol concludes that care
by relatives is not harmful to babies’ educational development if
it does not exceed 30 hours a week.
Source:- The Times Wednesday 13 August page 1
Policeman jailed for child porn
A policeman who had 25,000 child pornography images on his computer
has been jailed for 15 months.
Southwark crown court heard how Anthony Kind, from Northolt,
northwest London, had spent nearly £5,000 on porn using his
credit card.
His name was one of many given to Scotland Yard by the FBI as a
part of an international investigation.
Source:- The Times Wednesday 13 August page 10
‘Ruthless’ gang jailed for trade in migrants
A gang who smuggled more than 10,000 illegal immigrants
into Britain over two years were jailed in Belgium yesterday.
The gang, consisting of mainly Albanian men, were found guilty of
trafficking and belonging to a criminal organisation.
They were sentenced for between three and eight years in jail at a
court in Dendermonde.
The judge criticised Britain’s immigration legislation saying its
deficiencies attracted illegal immigrants, but also offered them no
protection.
Source:- The Daily Telegraph Wednesday 13 August page 9
Return of the refugee
A Gypsy asylum seeker who was deported last week must be
flown back to the UK to enable him to appeal against the decision,
a judge ruled yesterday.
The judge described Veli Bacari as having an “arguable case”
against David Blunkett’s decision to reject his claim for
asylum.
Source:- The Daily Express Wednesday 13 August page 2
Asylum seekers in great escape
Twelve asylum seekers have escaped from a government reception
centre after jumping over the perimeter fence.
The asylum seekers escaped from the Oakington reception centre in
Cambridgeshire on Sunday, and are still on the run.
The Home Office said an internal investigation would take place
into the escape, and that those involved were at different stages
of the asylum process.
Source:- The Daily Express Wednesday 13 August page 2
Man banned from saying ‘Paki’
A man has could face up to five years in jail if he uses the work
“Paki” in public in a unique anti-social behaviour order banning
him from using the racist term.
Michael Guilfoyle, of Ardwick, Manchester, received the order after
hurling abuse at council staff in phone calls over his request to
be rehoused.
The orders states that if he says the word in public or on the
phone to council staff he could be imprisoned for up to five
years.
Source:- The Guardian Wednesday 13 August page 7
Benefit sharks target elderly, say charities
Charities and campaigners have accused private benefit consultants
who charge older or disabled people for help in obtaining their
benefits as being “advice sharks” who prey on the vulnerable.
The concerned parties say there are signs of a “worrying growth” in
such consultants who offer to obtain benefits on a “no win, no fee”
basis.
Source:- The Guardian Wednesday 13 August page 8
Shortfall in services for vulnerable
A fifth of social services departments in England are not serving
children well and have a poor capacity for improvement, the chief
inspector of social services Denise Platt warned in her annual
report published yesterday.
The report went on to state that changes expected to come in the
forthcoming green paper on children due out in September should be
“sensible and capable of implementation”.
Source:- The Guardian Wednesday 13 August page 10
Give us a break
Europeans have long recognised the benefits of ‘social tourism’ for
poorer families in relieving stress and reducing isolation. Liza
Ramrayka on the lessons for the British and the tourist
industry.
Source:- Guardian Society Wednesday 13 August page 2
Credibility gaps
Tash Shrifrin on why training cuts have led to claims that the
government is selling the voluntary sector short
Source:- Guardian Society Wednesday 13 August page 10
Winning over minds
Plymouth’s mental health service reaches out to
refugees
Source:- Guardian Society Wednesday 13 August page 71
Double trouble
Laurence Pollock on the failure of services to recognise
the link between domestic violence and mental health
Source:- Guardian Society Wednesday 13 August page 72
Scottish newspapers
Battle to cut city’s teenage pregnancies
Glasgow council and NHS Greater Glasgow announced yesterday that
they are to appoint the country’s first dedicated teenage
pregnancy ‘czar’ to cut birth rates among under-16s and
improve the health and welfare of existing mothers.
The problem means some grandmothers in the city’s poorest
areas are younger than first time mothers in more affluent
neighbourhoods, and one in 10 teenage mothers in Glasgow is
under-16.
Catriona Renfrew, director of planning and community for NHS
Greater Glasgow, said one aim was a 20 per cent rise in the
proportion of teenage mothers in education until the age of 17,
with a consequent 20 per cent cut in teenage parents dependent on
benefits.
Source:- The Herald Wednesday 13 August 
Welsh newspapers
A loving family torn apart by bureaucrats
A Kosovan teenager and the foster parents he has lived with for
four years have lost their battle to see him remain in Wales.
Edmond Pone, aged 18, fled from Kosovo in 1999 and has since made a
new home with foster parents in Ebbw Vale. The Home Office has
turned down his appeal against deportation, and he says he is
terrified of returning to his native country.
Julia Gregg, who has fostered Pone for the last four years says
that despite being angry and scared about what the future holds,
the family will continue to fight to keep him in the UK.
Source:- Western Mail Wednesday 13 August page 1
Plea for women facing pension poverty
Women are more likely to face poverty when they retire because the
majority cannot afford to increase their pension contributions, new
research reveals.
Age Concern and the Fawcett Society that campaigns on behalf of
women are running a joint campaign to close the pension gap.
Katherine Rake, director of the Fawcett Society, said pressure was
mounting on the government from charities, thinktanks and private
sector organisations to modernise the pensions system.
The research was carried out by ICM which questioned 1,070 women by
telephone between 30 April and 4 May.
Source:- Western Mail Wednesday 13 August page 7
‘Mentally ill man neglected’
A mental health charity has criticised the treatment of a
man who smashed more than 40 shop windows in Cardiff, causing
£75,000 of damage.
Andrew Roxberry, aged 30, admitted 23 charges of criminal damage
when he smashed windows in the city centre wearing only his
underpants, but sentencing was repeatedly adjourned because there
were no beds available in south Wales.
Roxberry went on to spend 176 days in custody, and Marjorie Wallace
chief executive of the mental health charity, Sane, said that the
government should act to fill the funding gap to prevent others
like Roxberry from being similarly neglected.
Source:- Western Mail Wednesday 13 August page 11