News round up: Care ratings; hate crime probe; poverty up; child protection row

Action on disability hate crimes

Local authorities that fail to protect disabled people from persistent harassment or anti-social behaviour will face legal action if they are found to be ignoring disability hate crimes, the Equality and Human Rights Commission will announce today.

Read more on this story in The Independent

Boy, two, is snatched by social workers after refusing doctor’s advice to feed him junk food

Like many toddlers, Zak Hessey was a fussy eater who refused his mother’s healthy home cooking.
Concerned about his falling weight, his parents sought the advice of doctors. That simple act triggered a shocking chain of events that led to the youngster being put into foster care for four months.
Paul and Lisa Hessey believe in the long-term benefits of healthy eating and rejected advice to feed their two-year-old son high-calorie snack food such as chocolate, crisps and cakes.

Read more on this story in The Daily Mail

Setback for Brown as poverty rises

Poverty in Britain is as widespread now as it was in 2000, an authoritative study reveals, dealing a blow to Gordon Brown’s efforts to re-establish his credentials as a champion of the poor.

Thursday’s report shows that poverty, unemployment and home repossessions started rising again in 2004, well before the recession.

Read more on this story in The Financial Times

Nearly 4,000 adult social services criticised over level of care provided

As many as 80,000 people are living in care homes or receiving services rated as only “poor” or “adequate”, according to a government inspectorate.

Eight local councils have also been named and shamed for their performances in looking after the vulnerable and elderly, the Care Quality Commission (CQC) reveals in a report today.

Read more on this story in The Guardian

Pensioners need Golden Girls luxury, not dreary care homes, say ministers

Ministers will tomorrow unveil plans for a new model of Golden Girls-style retirement homes in Britain, aiming at airy apartments and luxurious shared facilities along the lines of hotels, rather than provision of dingy, cramped, care homes.

A report on accommodating Britain’s ageing population, commissioned by the Department of Health and Department for Communities, will urge a “national effort to build the homes that will meet our needs and aspirations as we grow older”.