Secrecy of family courts may be about to end

Secrecy of family courts may be about to end
Proposals aim to build confidence by exposing hearings to the same scrutiny as all other cases.
Source:- The Times, Wednesday 24 May 2006, page 9

Four jailed after abuse revealed by graffiti
Four paedophiles who used graffiti to advertise for under-age girls to abuse have been given sentences ranging from eight years to life. The police inquiry was started by a woman travelling on a train who noticed graffiti on a lavatory door urging girls between eight and 13 to text a mobile phone number.
Source:- The Independent, Wednesday 24 May 2006, page 13

Poor facing a lifetime of debt, says charity
People are sinking deeper into “overwhelming debt” from which it will take them a lifetime to escape, according to Citizens Advice. It said the people it was trying to help owed an average of £13,153 – a third more than they did three years ago.
Source:- The Daily Telegraph, Wednesday 24 May 2006, page 9

Unsure future
New Labour’s flagship initiative to help the most deprived families has been thrown into doubt by Tony Blair’s lukewarm appraisal. But is the prime minister expecting too much too soon of Sure Start?
Source:- Society Guardian, Wednesday 24 May 2006, page 3

Tories back injection centres for drug addicts
The Tories tentatively supported calls yesterday for the government to set up special centres where heroin addicts could legally inject themselves.
Source:- The Daily Telegraph, Wednesday 24 May 2006, page 12

My department is inadequate and heads may have to roll, says Reid
John Reid delivered an unprecedented attack on his own department yesterday when he condemned the immigration service as “not fit for purpose”.
Source:- The Times, Wednesday 24 May 2006, page 4

Big brother protest by charity
The Mental Health Foundation, an influential mental health charity has protested to Channel 4 at vulnerable people being placed in the Big Brother house after one contestant apparently threatened to kill himself.
Source:- The Guardian, Wednesday 24 May 2006, page 5

Prisoner of conscience
After more than two decades in the prison service, Martin Narey’s move to Barnardo’s was a shock. And although it’s been hard letting go, he wants to ensure children’s charities become a force to be reckoned with
Source:- Society Guardian, Wednesday 24 May 2006, page 5

No names, no proof, no consensus
MPs jump the gun in calling for action on mystery report that claims social services “snatch’” children from parents.
Source:- Society Guardian, Wednesday 24 May 2006, page 6

Taking up the initative
Asylum seekers who volunteer get the chance to make a difference in the health service.
Source:- Society Guardian, Wednesday 24 May 2006, page 7

Fantastic ideas
A brash fanzine in Sheffield is calling for a radical approach to celebrate the glorious past and future potential of ‘Sheffo – the best city in the world’.
Source:- Society Guardian, Wednesday 24 May 2006, page 1

Million migrants made citizens under Blair
British citizenship has been granted to nearly one million foreign nationals since Labour came to power in 1997. A record 161,000 obtained a UK passport last year, a 15 per cent increase on 2004.
Source:- The Daily Telegraph, Wednesday 24 May 2006, page 4

Scottish news

Repossession orders soar as debt crisis hits families
A massive rise in repossession orders faced by Scottish homeowners was yesterday blamed on a surge in loans secured on borrowers’ homes.
New figures obtained by the Scottish National Party show there was a 34 per cent increase in the number of repossession decrees in Scotland last year.
There were 6285 repossessions disposed of by Scottish courts in 2005 compared to 4694 the previous year, 54 per cent higher than during the height of the last housing crash in 1990.
Source:- The Herald, Wednesday 24 May 2006
 
Nurseries set to lose top staff in council cost-cutting plan
Nurseries across Edinburgh are set to lose senior teaching staff as part of council plans to save £150,000. Written answers provided to the Scottish National Party show that instead of fully trained staff specialising in nursery teaching, Edinburgh Council plans to use less-qualified personnel to “deliver the curriculum”.
Under the proposals, many teachers will no longer be responsible for single classes, instead working as part of a team in several nurseries. Officials admitted a rise in the number of pupils means there will be fewer teachers per group of children and senior staff are likely to be taken from the classroom and moved into policy and planning posts.
Source:- The Scotsman, Wednesday 24 May 2006

Welsh news

No sex please, we’re teens
Teenagers in the Vale of Glamorgan have been urged to write love songs and poetry to each other rather than having sex.
Council officials and health workers have launched the campaign, entitled ’50 ways or more to show someone you love them without having sex’, in an attempt to reduce teenage pregnancies and sexually transmitted diseases.
Source:- Western Mail, Wednesday May 24 2006