A helpline has been launched for parents worried that their children are becoming involved in gangs. Funded by a £30,000 investment from the Scottish government, it aims to ensure that adults have access to specialist advise about their concerns.

The Scottish Government has published the application form, equality monitoring form and guidance notes for the 2010 Voluntary Sector Development Fund (VSDF).

A BRAND new dedicated elderly mental health ward has opened, thanks to a £200,000 cash boost. The Katrine ward received its first patients on Monday at the Vale of Leven Hospital, following concern over the age gap between patients in the Christie Ward.

Hundreds of people have marched through Inverness in protest at Highland Council plans to scrap five new care homes for the elderly across the region.

Some people are being “inappropriately” admitted to Scotland’s secure psychiatric units, a study has found. An NHS audit found some Intensive Psychiatric Care Units (IPCUs) had admitted unsuitable groups, such as dementia sufferers.

THE SNP opposition are calling for the chairwoman of Highland Council’s social work committee to resign if plans to build five new care homes in the region are scrapped tomorrow (Thursday), as expected.

Dramatic photography and real life stories of drug use have been gathered in a new book by a peer education project in Dundee.

A mother has removed her six-year-old mixed-race son from a Moray school and claimed he has been the victim of “racial hatred”.

A major recruitment campaign to address a shortage of foster carers in Scotland has been hailed a success. Four Scottish councils pooled their resources last month to encourage potential carers to come forward.

A rehabilitation unit for people with problems including addiction and eating disorders is to be the latest casualty of cuts by the Church of Scotland’s social care council.