MILTON Grange, a new mental health service for older people, has been officially opened. The dedicated East Sussex County Council unit opened after a £1.6million refurbishment of the old Milton Court Resource Centre and offers short-term respite care and day services.

Andrew Lansley pulled off the rare feat yesterday of uniting his own Tory front benches and the Labour front benches in anger against him, amid new recriminations over Gordon Brown’s social care plans.

Increases in the cost of inspections for residential children’s homes providers could impact on the quality of care, the National Care Association has warned.

Efforts to reach a secret cross-party agreement on the funding of social care ­collapsed yesterday amid acrimony after the Conservatives claimed Labour was planning to impose a £20,000 “death tax” to fund a national care service.

ANOTHER two old people’s homes are facing closure in Stoke-on-Trent. Heathside House, in Goldenhill, and Eardley House, in Bradley, had been earmarked for refurbishment. But Stoke-on-Trent City Council is now proposing to close the buildings, because there are so many private care homes in the city.

A VULNERABLE woman had sex with a former Kirklees social worker after he gave her cash to pay off loans, a conduct hearing has been told.

A single mother has been arrested for allegedly murdering her “severely autistic” son by poisoning him with bleach. Emergency services went to the family home in Barking, east London, after she dialled 999 on Tuesday night.