Around 90 per cent of care homes can ignore the Human Rights Act, according to Help the Aged. The law, which came into force in October 2000, gives residents of council-run homes the right to take cases of abuse and neglect to court.

Researchers have revealed that prescribing some medicines to elderly people in order to stave off illnesses could just mean changing the nature of diseases and reduce life quality overall.

Britain’s largest trade union today blamed poor pay for the neglect and abuse of elderly people in care homes. Jack Dromey, the deputy general secretary of Unite, said the profit motive was at the heart of the ill treatment of elderly people.

Politicians and drinks manufacturers have dismissed a call by a chief constable to raise the legal drinking age to 21. Peter Fahy, of Cheshire police, said raising the limit would send “a clear message about the dangers” of alcohol.

About £80m a year could be saved by providing better support for young offenders leaving jail, a report says. Research by the resettlement project Reset and charity Rainer argues that providing housing and training is cuts further crime so it is cost-effective.

Improved supervision is the aim of a step-by-step workforce development tool that has been designed by Skills for Care and the Children’s Workforce Development Council.

A care home nurse who understood “nothing about medication” did not even know what an aspirin was for, a hearing has heard. Nobantu Dlayiya’s bosses looked on aghast as the 61-year-old struggled to make sense of the medication rounds at the Pinetree Lodge care home in Gateshead.

Almost all families with disabled children are suffering from financial difficulties, according to a new report. Many struggle with the extra costs of raising disabled children, which is calculated to be three times higher than other children.

The government’s ‘dignity in care’ campaign is being extended to people with mental health problems, nine months after it was launched to ensure older people were treated with respect by health and care professionals.

A nationwide search is under way to find two convicted sex offenders who pose a danger to children. Joseph Taylor, 27, and William Bailey, 58, were recently released from prison and are known to have links with North Yorkshire and Essex.