A massive influx of migrant staff in the social care sector is causing disruption for those being looked after because of high staff turn¬over rates, academics have warned.

A bulletin published today by social care watchdog the Commission for Social Care Inspection shows that, while many services have improved the way they handle people’s money, there are examples of bad practice.

Doctors are calling for regulators to offer guidance over whether they should help patients circumvent “shortcomings” of NHS care. A recent report highlighted moves such as having tests done privately to jump NHS waiting lists.

A mass rally yesterday called for a one-off amnesty to allow hundreds of thousands of immigrants living in the UK to become full citizens. The Strangers Into Citizens campaign, which attracted thousands of supporters to Trafalgar Square, proposes that migrants who have been in Britain for more than four years should be given a two year work permit without access to benefits.

The genetic roots of bipolar disorder – manic depression – have been revealed by the first scan of the entire human genetic code, revealing a new target for treatments. Bipolar disorder affects one person in every 100 inducing mood changes from extremes of depression to irritation, elation and mania.

A package of measures to head off a summer prison overcrowding crisis, including abolishing the option of custody for shoplifting offences, has been vetoed by Tony Blair, The Times has learnt.

Young women drinking heavily are increasingly to blame for the rising tide of anti-social behaviour on Britain’s streets, figures reveal. And the Government’s on-the-spot fines have done little to deter the army of “yobettes”.

Thousand of elderly people are living in filthy care homes exposed to the risk of infections and malnutrition. Inspectors found one in three homes provides barely “adequate” living conditions, and rated hundreds as “poor”.

{mosimage}It means many residents are at risk from untrained staff and low standards of cleanliness. In addition, some are not being helped to eat or are given unappetising food, while others struggle to get their medication or see doctors when ill. The catalogue of failings is exposed after the Liberal Democrats used Freedom of Information laws to obtain details of inspections in England.

The information was collected by the Commission for Social Care Inspection, which monitors care homes, but has not been released ahead of a new rating scheme to be introduced next year. The homes are divided into four categories: poor, adequate, good and excellent. In total, 732 were rated poor, and 3,086 were adequate. More than 400,000 of those aged 65 and above live in care homes.

Health Minister Ivan Lewis admitted in January that many elderly people were effectively being starved to death in homes, with some given a single scoop of mashed potato as a meal.

Yesterday, in a special Radio 4 ‘You and Yours’ programme, he said Labour was fully aware of the crisis facing Britain’s soaring elderly population, which ‘is one of the great political challenges facing our society’. But critics claim the Government has failed to provide extra funding to match the growing demands, leaving taxpayers to pick up the tab.

The Children’s Workforce Development Council (CWDC) has published two new resources to help both employers and employees prepare for the Integrated Qualifications Framework (IQF), due to be fully implemented by 2010.

Elderly people deserve a radical rethink of the way their care is paid for, the Government admits today amid dire warnings from experts that the system is failing. Ivan Lewis, the minister responsible for care services, appears to acknowledge in a radio interview that the funding issue is potentially as big as the pensions crisis.

{mosimage}His comments come as a YouGov poll says three out of four people say funding should be based on need, not income.

Asked if he accepted that social care funding was one of the great unresolved issues of our time, Mr Lewis tells You and Yours on Radio 4 today:

“It’s absolutely crucial. People are living longer and developing conditions that we’ve never known before, like Alzheimer’s. Disabled people now have, and rightly want, full and longer lives.

“And if you add to that rising public expectations in terms of what they expect from social care services, it’s absolutely right that the Treasury and the Government have acknowledged that social care is one of the great challenges facing our society and the Government. We need a new consensus for a new settlement that’s fair and sustainable. We need to redefine the relationship between the state, the family and the citizen.”