We’ve made it. We’re in.

June 28, 2007 in Community Care

Gordon Brown is set to create a department of children in his first full day as prime minister today, splitting the current Department for Education and Skills into two.

Yesterday saw the resignation of Patricia Hewitt as health secretary, with current education secretary Alan Johnson set to take over.

Source:- The Guardian Thursday 28 June 2007 page 1

‘Leniency’ for parents who hurt children with a smack

The Sentencing Guidelines Council has said that parents who injure their children accidentially in smacking them should receive lenient punishments.

The panel of judges said that, under the 2004 law around smacking, which means parents who injure their children with a smack will be guilty of actual bodily harm, the fact that injury was not “reasonably forseeable” should spare parents jail.

This effectively revives the old defence of “reasonable chastisement” for parents, which was removed under the 2004 law, and was criticised by the NSPCC.

Source:- The Daily Mail Thursday 28 June 2007 page 24

The 11,000 voices ignored as drugs funds were halted

The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence heard 11,000 accounts detailing the benefits of a series of Alzheimer’s drugs for sufferers, but still decided to bar them from prescription on the NHS, the High Court heard yesterday.

During its consultation on the issue, Nice received 7,000 responses from people with dementia and their carers, while the Alzheimer’s Society supplied a further 4,000, detailing the benefits of the drugs.

The manufacturers of one of the drugs, Aricept, have taken Nice to judicial review over the decision.

Source:- The Daily Mail Thursday 28 June 2007 page 28

‘Wales failing children in care’

School results for looked after children in Wales are unacceptable and more must be done to improve them, the minister for education said yesterday.

Carwyn Jones said that she wanted to draw up a list of education attainment targets for the group.

Only four per cent of children in care in Wales get five or more GCSEs grade C-A*

Source:- Western Mail, Thursday, 28 June 2007