A council has moved to end a disabled access row which ended up going before the Scottish Executive at one stage.

A prison which was once “notorious” for violence has been praised by inspectors for its improvements. Shotts Prison is “unrecognisable” from the institution where less than two decades ago clashes between staff and inmates were common, a report has said.

He doesn’t know it, but Dionne McMillan’s newborn son may have saved his mother’s life. The six-week-old has proved a lifeline for the young mum, who was bullied at school and has attempted suicide at least ten times.

Scottish Health Secretary Nicola Sturgeon today called for NHS24 to increase its number of smaller call centres so there is a base in every health board area.

A crisis centre set up last year to help people with mental health issues is experiencing a rise in people using the service.

An elderly woman died yesterday and two other people are seriously ill from E-coli poisoning in cases linked to eating cold meat.

Families of children with a rare disease were devastated yesterday after a drug commonly available in England was rejected for use on the NHS in Scotland.

Most young ethnic minority people in Scotland see the police as racist, according to the first independent study of their attitudes to law and order.

A care worker who saved an elderly couple from a fire could be honoured for her “exceptional bravery”. Gayle Stevenson led the pair to safety from their burning home after their chip pan went up in flames in Larbert on Thursday.

{mosimage}She and the pensioners, who were both in their 80s, needed hospital treatment for the effects of breathing smoke.

The 26-year-old has now been recommended for a civic award from Falkirk Council.

Ms Stevenson told the BBC Scotland news website she had been visiting a client when she noticed thick, black smoke coming from a house in Waverley Terrace at about 2100 BST.

She managed to persuade the couple to leave the house, but the man went back into the burning kitchen.

Ms Stevenson said: “I didn’t think about it. I just wanted to get the man out. The smoke was so thick from the ceiling to my shins, I couldn’t even see my hand in front of my face. I crawled back in on my hands and knees and brought him out.”

Ms Stevenson then flagged down a passing fire engine, which had been dealing with another incident.

Kenneth Taylor, from Central Scotland Fire and Rescue, praised Ms Stevenson for rescuing the couple, who did not have a smoke alarm fitted in their home.

Aberlour in Scotland are one of the four lucky charities to receive a share of the half a million raised by The Co-operative Group UK. Staff from the group’s various businesses supported by Scottish consumers have been hosting a series of fundraising events since the 2nd April 2007.