Wednesday 12 May 2004

By Amy Taylor, Shirley Kumar, Clare Jerrom and Alex
Dobson

Nurse code of practice overhaul

The code of practice governing the recruitment of nurses is to be
overhauled after a report from the Royal College of Nursing accused
NHS managers of “human trafficking”.

Speaking at the RCN annual conference health secretary John Reid
said he wants to subject employment agencies to tighter ethical
rules and introduce greater scrutiny of the private health
sector.

The report said 40,000 new recruits to the NHS came from abroad in
the last three years.

Source:- The Times Wednesday 12 May page 8

Student nurse childcare costs met

The government is offering parents training to be nurses up to
£170 a week in childcare costs.

The scheme aimed at boosting NHS staffing is expected to come into
force in September. It will allow low-income students to claim up
to 85 per cent of childcare costs.

Source:- The Times Wednesday 12 May page 8

Drug firm threatened us, say MMR families

Parents have accused a drug firms involved in a case against
families who claim that the MMR vaccine has made their children ill
of trying to intimidate them into dropping the legal action.

Lawyers for Merck & Co said the costs of the action had been
“considerable” and wanted to know if the parents would
be carrying on with the case, now public funding was likely to be
withdrawn.

The lawyers said that the parents would be “at risk of facing
liability for any further costs Merck continues to incur in
defending the claim”.

Source:- The Guardian Wednesday 12 May page 7

Cause and effect

The national lottery is now firmly-established. But opinion is
still divided on whether the game, and the money it raises for
worthy causes, is a good thing.

Source:- Society Guardian Wednesday 12 May page 2

The road to ruin

A village for people with learning difficulties is being threatened
by plans for a new bypass.

The Rudolf Steiner village for 150 children and adults with special
needs, located in Newton Dee on the outskirts of Aberdeen was
created over 60 years ago and inspired hundreds of other similar
communities.

If the Aberdeen Western Peripheral Route is built it would cut
through Newton Dee.

Source:- Society Guardian Wednesday 12 May page 6

City with a winning mentality

Did the success of the 2002 Commonwealth Games help to regenerate
the local community?

Source:- Society Guardian Wednesday 12 May page 9

What else can I do?

Five years advising on benefits in a jobcentre is too many for
27-year-old Jo, who wants to continue her career elsewhere.

Source:- Society Guardian Wednesday 12 May page 120

Scottish newspapers

Widow to set up family support group

A woman whose husband committed suicide is to set up a support
group for families in Inverness following a number of deaths in and
around the city.

Seven people are believed to have taken their own lives in the
Highland capital this year.

The support group is being proposed by a widow whose husband took
his life two months ago, although she has asked not to be
named.

Source:- The Scotsman  Wednesday 12 May

Parents face questions on leaving children at home

Parents who allegedly left two children at home unsupervised while
they went on holiday are due to be questioned today when they
return to Scotland.

Gwen McWhirter and her husband Gary could face charges in
connection with leaving the girls aged 10 and 14 to fend for
themselves while the couple enjoyed a 10-day break in Turkey.

Police tracked down the couple after they were alerted by a worried
neighbour. The parents said they would return as soon as possible
and cut short their holiday.

Social workers were immediately contacted and both girls were
ordered to stay with adult relatives until the couple return.

Source:- The Scotsman  Wednesday 12 May

Video links for the deaf

Video conferencing systems specifically designed for deaf users are
being developed by researchers at Aberdeen’s Robert Gordon
University.

The research aims to improve the quality of visual communications
for people with impaired hearing by developing new videophone
systems that transmit important image features.

Source:- The Scotsman  Wednesday 12 May

City chiefs abandon video ban on pupils

A controversial plan to ban parents from filming children’s
school nativity plays and sports days have been abandoned by
education chiefs in Edinburgh.

The U-turn follows a storm of protest over Edinburgh
Council’s policy to ban recordings unless the parent of every
child involved had given their written consent.

The move came amid fears the images could fall into the hands of
sex offenders.

The council launched a public consultation on the issue last
September and council chiefs have issued recommendations which mean
parents can film and photograph school events in most
circumstances.

Source:- Evening News  Tuesday 11 May

Child offenders to face tagging threat

Young offenders in Edinburgh are to be electronically tagged under
a new pilot scheme.

The Antisocial Behaviour (Scotland) Bill is currently being
considered by the Scottish Parliament and, if passed, children aged
between 12 and 15 will be electronically tagged.

The technology would be used on serious and persistent offenders in
a drive to tackle antisocial behaviour and protect the public from
further offending.

The Scottish executive will fund the Edinburgh pilot
initiative.

Source:- Evening News   Tuesday 11 May

Welsh newspapers

Blind centre under siege

A charity for the blind based in Ebbw Vale that has been targeted
by vandals has had to pay £4,500 from donations to install
CCTV cameras.

The Vision Foundation Resource Centre has been subjected to a
number of incidents of vandalism and objects like knives and
syringes have been thrown into the sensory garden, which is used by
partially sighted young people.

Fund raising officer, Fiona Perkins said all the money from the
charity’s collection boxes is being used to fund
repairs.

Source:- South Wales Argus Tuesday 11 May page 1 and
5

Youth Workers drunk

A Welsh project aimed at bringing together disadvantaged teenagers
from across Europe has been branded a waste of money, following
incidents of drunkenness among workers.

The Storm Project has also been criticised because of alleged
incidents of drug-taking, theft and fighting among the young people
taking part.

The project was developed by the Abergavenny based People and Work
Unit and is aimed at increasing the confidence and self esteem
among its participants.

Welsh assembly member David Davies said a new report into the work
of the project has highlighted serious concerns.

Source:- Western Mail Wednesday 12 May page 1