Work has started to draw up an action plan to improve social services in Dumfries and Galloway. Adviser Stephen Wilds has begun a six-month contract with the council after a

The number of people convicted for abusing children has increased by nearly 50% in the past six years, according to figures released by the Scottish Executive. The charges include cruelty to children, sexual abuse and grooming children for sexual purposes.

The number of disabled people waiting for supported accommodation in Edinburgh has soared in the last five years as city leaders battle a cash crisis. New figures show that in September there were 136 people waiting to be housed by Edinburgh City Council – a rise of 89 per cent since 2001.

From the age of seven, Andrew Dudgeon has looked after his ailing mother and father, providing vital practical support as well as much needed emotional care. As well as his daily schoolwork, Andrew, now 15, is responsible for running the house, coping with the regular chores his parents are unable to carry out.

A project which helps care for babies born addicted to drugs in Edinburgh has scooped a major award. The city council-run Vulnerable Babies Project was among the winners in the Standard Life Edinburgh Achievement Awards. Run from the Springwell House Social Work Centre on Gorgie Road, the project helps prepare foster carers to look after babies born to drug addicted mothers. The children often experience withdrawal symptoms, called Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome, after becoming dependent on drugs in the womb. Latest figures show 40 babies are born every year in Edinburgh addicted to heroin.

A charity chief was yesterday given seven more days to repay hundreds of thousands of pounds owed to creditors but was told he still faced a jail sentence. The High Court in Glasgow heard that Tony Freeman, former head of Paisley-based Solutions Recruitment and Management Consultancy, had already handed over £210,000 a judge ordered him to repay.

Many of the most high-profile voluntary groups in Scotland stand to lose up to £20m following a shake-up in vital European funding. The organisations, which include the Prince’s Trust, lone-parent charity One Plus, and the Wise Group, are warning the change will lead to 1200 redundancies and the closure of projects serving 17,500 people.

Hundreds of autistic children are being denied a proper education in Scotland’s schools, according to a damning report by education watchdogs. Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Education (HMIe) found that most teachers in mainstream schools lacked a proper working knowledge of autism.

Council chiefs in Dumfries and Galloway have promised to reveal the cost of employing a troubleshooter to tackle failings in social services. Independent adviser Stephen Wilds, with a proven track record in the field, has been given a six-month contract.

Telling the public the whereabouts of paedophiles would drive offenders underground, senior police officers and social workers have warned. They were giving evidence to a Scottish Parliament sub-committee as part of an inquiry into sex offenders.