A SCOTTISH city council is facing the threat of legal action over controversial plans to axe services to vulnerable and disabled people as part of a £27 million package of budget cuts.

THE number of nursery teachers in Scottish state schools has rapidly declined over the past three years, potentially damaging the prospects of many youngsters before they even start formal education.

Dozens of charities across Scotland working to get former drug addicts and homeless people into employment are being forced to close key services.

Voluntary bodies across the country that provide employability training for the most hard to reach members of society under the New Future Fund have been told that the funding ends on March 31 and, in many cases, will not be replaced.

The fund was aimed at improving the skills of some 4500 people farthest from the labour market, including the homeless, those with mental health problems and drug addiction.

Some 50% of those who went through these various projects went on to employment, education and training.

The national funding package of approximately £3m a year finishes in two weeks and many bodies claim it has not been replaced in their area.

Under the new Scottish Government funding concordat, ministers say the fund will be replaced by the Fairer Scotland Fund, which will be allocated by Community Planning Partnerships.

But many of the organisations losing the New Future (NF) funding say they have been told they will be unable to apply for other funds until the summer and that they have no money to plug the gap.

Twenty-two convicted sex offenders have vanished from Scotland’s new monitoring regime, The Herald can reveal.

An elderly widow showed her gratitude to a hospital which treated her husband by leaving it £3 million in her will, it emerged today.

A HARD-UP council could be sued for axeing key services for disabled people. Aberdeen City Council’s £27million budget cuts will see funding withdrawn from social work and care organisations.

THE political wrangle over the introduction of new home care charges has been ongoing for months but the final decision has now been made.

CITY councillors were today accused of “assassinating” Edinburgh’s community groups after backing funding cuts that will lead to closures and job losses.

At a highly-charged meeting in the City Chambers yesterday, nine groups made last-minute pleas for more cash, but only one – the Edinburgh Community Food Initiative – was successful.

A £300,000 funding cut for Edinburgh Leisure means six of the city’s eight sports centre crèches will now almost certainly close, despite protests from mothers and a petition signed by more than 1400 people in just a few days.

Five of Edinburgh’s community newspapers, which have been published for over 30 years and are read by 175,000 people, are also set to be wound up, with the loss of 11 jobs.

Many groups also hit out after hearing of the cuts for the first time days ago, either from council reports or in the Evening News.

Scores of groups will now have to cope with no annual increase in funding – some for the fourth year running.

A DESPERATE Scots mum is pleading for someone to help her autistic daughter, who can’t stop punching herself in the head.

A SECURE unit for children was likened to a “war zone” by furious staff yesterday.