Ahead of Joan Bakewell’s BBC Panorama investigation of older people’s drinking habits, BASW has launched a guide aimed at spotting the signs of alcohol abuse, and expressed concern that the excesses of this group can be overlooked by hospitals.

Biggest spending falls in deprived areas reflect coalition’s town-hall budget cuts, says Labour

Social care professionals have been invited to suggest practice issues for a new research project to focus on. The project is intended to provide workers with quick and easy access to academic research that could help them address key decisions in social care practice.

Dame Jo Williams, chair of England care regulator the Care Quality Commission (CQC) has announced that she is resigning from her post and will step down as soon as a successor is appointed, commenting:

Nearly one in three children lives with a parent who is a binge drinker, research shows. The figure equates to between 3.3 million and 3.5 million children in the United Kingdom living with at least one parent who downs six or more drinks on a single occasion for women or eight for men.

Nearly £8 million was spent on agency staff in five years by Cambridge City Council, which filled middle-ranking posts at an annual cost of up to £92,000 each.

The Care Quality Commission (CQC), has released a consultation paper on its strategy for 2013-2016 asking for views on its plans for the next three years.

An innovative project has the potential to grow into a replacement for existing services for older people, by Hilary Cottam

Save the Children is seeking to raise £500,000 to help children from low-paid working families, who it says are going without hot meals and winter clothes.

Children’s minister Tim Loughton has been axed from his children’s minister post in the cabinet reshuffle