Work has started on a new £9.2m mental health unit for the elderly at the Great Western Hospital site in Swindon. Bulldozers moved in to clear the site in May and contractors have been busy laying the foundations for the new unit in recent weeks. It is hoped the project will be completed by the end of next year. The unit, which is being built by the Avon and Wiltshire Mental Health Partnership NHS Trust (AWP), will provide services for older adults with mental health problems, including in-patient beds.

Mental health units should not be spared from smoking bans, public health experts have claimed. Dr Jonathan Campion of Queen Mary’s Hospital, London, UK and colleagues argue that exempting mental health units from the general ban on smoking in public places would worsen patients’ problems. Writing in the British Medical Journal, they state that health inequalities would be exacerbated as many mental health patients are heavy smokers, so are at high risk of illness and mortality.

The Government must tackle rural homelessness urgently, say the Campaign For The Protection of Rural England (CPRE). With average rural incomes at £17,400 and average rural house prices standing at £172,500 local people currently would need to borrow 9.9 times their salary to afford their own home, which is unaffordable and unsustainable.

Mum Carol Glenister, who helped Wiltshire County Council gain an award for its work in helping people with learning disabilities, said she is ashamed of her involvement now the council is planning to close five day centres. Mrs Glenister, whose 29-year-old daughter Claire became severely disabled after being vaccinated, said she felt betrayed by the council. Claire’s father Nick was the founder of the Major Wrecks male majorette group which has gained national fame and raised huge amounts of cash to help disabled people. The couple also helped found the Contact a Family support group.

Shortcomings in the way police, probation and prisons work to protect the public from released criminals have been exposed. A report by three criminal justice watchdogs showed the risk to the public presented by offenders had not been analysed by the time of their release in four out of 10 cases.

Somerset County Council is introducing a database as part of a government scheme to improve care of vulnerable children. The government introduced a national initiative following publication of the Victoria Climbie Inquiry in January 2003 that recommended establishing new ways to keep more reliable information on child welfare.

An independent report shows that being out of work is bad for both mind and body – progressively damaging health and decreasing life expectancy. The comprehensive review of more than 400 pieces of scientific evidence, Is Work Good for your Health and Well-being? concludes that being in work is good for your physical and mental health, boosting self esteem and quality of life. Adverse health effects of being out of work include higher rates of mental health problems than the general population, as well as increased likelihood of suicide, disability and obesity.

Drug users seeking help to quit their habit face a “postcode lottery” of care, a watchdog has said. The Healthcare Commission and the National Treatment Agency for substance misuse reviewed the services provided across England. Services in general were found to be improving, but it was found that fewer than a third of dedicated action teams provided a good or excellent service. The charity Drugscope said the report showed improvements were needed. The report looked at whether the 149 drug action teams (DATs) prescribe drugs safely and appropriately and looked at their planning and co-ordination of services.

Ageism is endemic in health services, argues a senior doctor in the British Medical Journal. His warning follows a study published online last month, that found substantial undertreatment of stroke and mini-stroke (transient ischaemic attack) in patients over the age of 80, despite good evidence that older patients benefit from treatment. The authors concluded that the older patients were discriminated against.

Agreement over a property deal has thrown a lifeline to community services helping the disabled and people with mental health problems in Norfolk. The future of the Merle Boddy Centre in Swaffham has now been secured after a 60-year lease at a special low rate was granted by Breckland Council to Meridian East, a Norfolk-based charity. Council spokesman Melanie Baker said: “If a new leaseholder had not been found, several of these services would have had nowhere else to go.”