Grieving young people in Midlothian will now be able to access help through music therapy, thanks to a £500 grant from the Princes Trust. Midlothian Young Carers, a project run by Children 1st, is one of 11 organisations to receive a grant from The Princess Royal Trust for Carers in the second round of a grants programme funded by Comic Relief.

Plans to introduce a new scheme to ensure the safety of north-east prisoners being held in custody have suffered a major setback after a key member of staff suddenly quit her job.

Inmates of Scotland’s largest prison have complained of being forced to wear dirty and ill-fitting underwear, according to a report. Barlinnie prisoners told inspectors that they were given prison-issue underpants, socks and vests which could be stained or not the right size.

JK Rowling yesterday condemned a decision to deny multiple sclerosis patients in Scotland access to a drug on the grounds of cost. The Harry Potter author, whose mother suffered MS, broke her silence on the Scottish Medicines Consortium’s refusal to recommend Tysabri ahead of a debate on the drug by MSPs.

The elderly residents of an Aberdeenshire nursing home are being screened for tuberculosis after a member of staff fell ill with a suspected case of the potentially fatal infection.

Delegates at the Acpos annual drugs conference this week will be shown a DVD of boys in Polmont young offenders institute, describing the natural transition for them from binge drinking to taking cannabis and other drugs, including heroin and cocaine. For many of them, this was the reason they ended up behind bars.

Shetland is the best place in Scotland for old people who want to keep living in their own home, a survey has revealed. The London-based Chartered Society of Physiotherapy (CSP) found Shetland Islands Council helped more people stay at home than any other Scottish authority.

Dementia costs Scotland £1.4bn a year but not enough is being done to tackle the problem, according to a leading charity. Alzheimer Scotland said that 58,000 people in Scotland are currently diagnosed with dementia, but that number will almost double to 102,000 by 2031.

Patients were removed from official waiting list figures because of staff shortages at a Scottish hospital, prompting claims last night that the statistics were being manipulated. People waiting for hip and knee replacements in one part of Glasgow were excluded from the Scottish Executive’s much-vaunted waiting times promise.

A childminder has been struck off after it was discovered she was looking after as many as 15 youngsters – five times her legal entitlement – strapping some toddlers into car safety seats in the cramped living room of her home. Inspectors acting on a tip-off found nine children crammed into a cold room with only limited space to move around.