Charities and campaign groups have hailed plans to give children of asylum-seeking families the same access to education as Scottish children. Under plans announced by the Scottish Executive, young children of such families will also be given nursery places in line with recommendations from HM Inspectorate of Education.

Health chiefs in the North-east yesterday backed calls to retain local services for child cancer patients amid concerns they may have to travel hundreds of miles for treatment.

Detailed proposals for new care services for the elderly in the Helensburgh and Lomond area were approved yesterday by Health Secretary Nicola Sturgeon, marking the final chapter for the Jeannie Deans Unit in Helensburgh.

A £3 million one-off grant from the Scottish Government will help looked after children are to get extra help to support the transition to living on their own, and pay for general improvements to residential schools and care homes.

Recruiting staff and prioritising services are the key challenges for Shetland Islands Council’s social work department, according to its chief officer. Brian Doughty’s comments came after the Social Work Inspection Agency (SWIA) determined that the isles social care services delivered well for many people in the isles.

The new boss of Scotland’s biggest landlord has vowed to deliver 21st century housing to the people of Glasgow. Taroub Zahran said she wants to put Glasgow Housing Association at the centre of the city’s ambitious regeneration plans – and create strong, sustainable communities.

In February The Inverness Courier revealed how blind 98-year-old George MacDonald from Haugh Court in Inverness was told his home help was being withdrawn because of budget constraints.

{mosimage}Today Highland Council social worker Alison Napier tells why, after 14 years in the profession she loves, she feels so demoralised that she is considering giving up.

I entered social work in 1993 with my eyes open, knowing full well that this is a solid, well-intentioned job rather than a radical one.

We try to provide care to vulnerable people, within the constraints of a local authority budget.

Straightforward enough thus far. So why have I become so deeply ashamed of my job and of my employer that I am considering leaving a field of work that I have enjoyed for so long? Here are a few stories that provide an answer to that question.

Mrs Stewart has a council home-help who comes in for half-an-hour, seven mornings a week. She is in her 80s, lives alone, and finds it hard to get dressed and washed in the mornings because of stiffness, angina and anxiety, so the carer helps her to have a shower and dress.

Psychologists are to investigate what stops NHS staff washing their hands as part of a drive to tackle hospital superbugs in Scotland.

Home carers have warned of an ever-deepening crisis within Fife Council’s social work service. And staff have become so frustrated and disheartened by the situation they are faced with, there have even been rumblings of possible strike action.

One of the UK’s leading experts on child abuse has raised doubts about the conviction of a social worker after an investigation into a residential school in Ayrshire.

{mosimage}Ray Wyre, who works as a consultant to police investigations and public inquiries into child abuse, said staff at Kerelaw School found guilty of physical assaults were judged by standards which did not apply at the time the offences were said to have happened.

The trial of Matt George and John Muldoon, two former staff members at Kerelaw, took place in early 2006. There were 85 charges against them.

Mr Wyre was in court as an expert witness for the prosecution, but he was not called to give evidence.

He has now claimed this was because he made no secret of his doubts about some of the prosecution evidence.

When the prosecution finished, he closed his laptop and went to speak to Mr Muldoon. He said he told him he ought to be acquitted. The Crown Office said it was a matter for the fiscal to decide who was called to give evidence.