{mosimage}The Scottish Cabinet will get regular reports on how looked after children perform at school. Education Minister Hugh Henry said the move demonstrates the Executive’s commitment to improving education for these youngsters.   

A national ‘champion’ will also work with councils to make sure they are providing the best possible education for children in care. The measures, which were drawn up by a working group established to examine the education of looked after children, were announced by Mr Henry during a visit to St Joseph’s Academy, Kilmarnock today.  

Currently, children in care gain fewer qualifications than other pupils. Ministers have made it clear that this is unacceptable.

The report includes recommendations for councils, teachers, social workers and health workers, including:

• Reminding councils of their role and responsibility as corporate parents

• Improving training for teachers and other professionals to ensure that they have the skills to deal with these pupils

• Providing key workers with guidance on their role in supporting individual young people

• Ensuring that councils continue to provide young people with support beyond their eighteenth birthday, including financial support for those going on to further and higher education. 

The Scottish Institute for Residential Child Care (SIRCC) has endorsed the findings of a Scottish Executive report into looked after children.

Grampian Police chiefs are to be investigated for refusing to reveal how many officers are currently monitoring sex offenders in Buchan, it emerged last night.

The priorities of the Scottish Executive justice department has been questioned after £25,000 of public money was spent on helping staff master the art of juggling chiffon scarves.

A social worker who runs a home for troubled teens was charged by police over a drug haul linked to the Lyons crime clan. Gavin Harper is deputy unit manager at East Dunbartonshire Council children’s unit in Lenzie.

Anti-social behaviour orders (Asbos) have been in force since 1998, but in 2004 the measures were extended to include children. The legislation pledged to improve lives for communities plagued by gangs, noise and nuisance by invoking Asbos or dispersal zones.

The NHS should provide more faith-based care for Muslims, an expert says. Muslims are about twice as likely to report poor health and disability than the general population, says Edinburgh University’s Professor Aziz Sheikh.

Inspectors are being called in as part of a crackdown on the way local authorities handle the welfare and education of children in care.

Provocative posters comparing people who have learning disabilities to pets have been heavily criticised by animal rights groups. The posters were unveiled yesterday by Enable Scotland to mark the beginning of a campaign to highlight the problems learning disability charities face when raising funds.

{mosimage}Enable, the leading charity in Scotland for children and adults with learning disabilities, wants the posters to show that animal charities attract almost twice as many donors as disability charities.

In the UK 11.1% of the population donate to animal charities, while just 6.6% pledge cash to disability charities.

However, the campaign has been condemned for creating conflict between two sets of charities.

John Robins, secretary of the charities Animal Concern Advice Line and Save Our Seals Fund, said: “Enable Scotland is skating on thin ice in a pair of tackety boots.

“They forget that the welfare state was established to ensure that the educational and health needs of the people of this country would be paid for through our taxes.”

“If they think more money is needed to pay for special education programmes then they should be attacking government for failing to fulfil its duties.”

He added: “There is no welfare state for animals. There is no Children in Need Day for animals. People who choose to support animal charities have already paid for the welfare state through their taxes.

Working mothers are missing out on thousands of pounds because local authorities have failed to put in place available tax breaks. Childcare vouchers, which cut tax from nursery fees, can save busy parents as much as £100 a month.