A lifeline has been thrown to voluntary groups which feared they would need to fold after funding was withdrawn.

Suicide rates among men in the Highlands have fallen to their lowest level in five years, with 22 taking their own life.

The heartbroken father of the three children at the centre of an Edinburgh suspicious death probe said he is “struggling to come to terms” with their loss.

The council has this afternoon issued the statement below to clarify the situation surrounding the Riggi family whose three children were found dead in a flat yesterday

Social workers were not alerted to the “real emergency” facing Theresa Riggi’s children until 3.05pm on Wednesday – five minutes after emergency services found the youngsters dead.

The manager of a Moray respite centre which has been facing closure spoke last night of her relief at a decision to keep it open.

A NEW dementia centre has opened on the site of a former hospital. The Seagrove Centre is based at the site of the old Eastern General in the north of Edinburgh.

A social worker has been struck off after having sex with a “vulnerable” carer at the offices of an Orkney charity.

A £1.2m “landmark project” combining health and council services in Dumfries and Galloway has been completed.

THE emergency services and cash-strapped councils are set to change the way they react to issues including child protection by potentially providing joint services and sharing facilities, according to the chief constable of Lothian and Borders Police.