The government is to intervene in Warrington’s children’s services after an Ofsted inspection found its safeguarding services to be inadequate.

FIVE months ago Mark Wilkinson had a steady job as a community safety officer with Hampshire County Council and lived with his wife and young son in Freemantle.

Children’s Secretary Ed Balls called on wider society to celebrate the invaluable role social workers play in protecting children from harm during his speech at the Children & Young People Now Awards last night.

Gordon Brown came under renewed pressure over how his promise of free care at home for the elderly will be met as figures showed a fall in government funding for dementia research.

The 100,000 UK children who run away from home each year should be offered more protection via a network of new refuge centres, a charity has urged.

AN INVESTIGATION into the death of a teenager found dead in a house has been launched by social services.

A couple have accused social services of “kidnapping” their nine week-old daughter for adoption. They allege that police and council staff forced their way into their home and took the baby away while they were physically restrained. They claim they were not allowed to cuddle the child or say goodbye.

The National Autistic Society will continue to publicise the hidden vulnerabilities of people with Asperger syndrome despite the Government’s decision not to block Gary McKinnon’s extradition on medical grounds.

Ofsted’s work always generates considerable interest and sometimes controversy. I think this is because we report on things that matter deeply to parents and the public, and we sometimes have to give hard messages. It is our job to stand up for the interests of children, young people and adult learners. They are the people for whom robust and independent inspection matters most.

Commenting on the news that Hampshire County Council has more than 300 fewer nurses than needed, Test Valley MP, Liberal Democrat Shadow Health Minister and member of the House of Commons Health Select Committee, Sandra Gidley, said: