This section of the website contains news and information on topical health issues.
Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, Ed Balls, has today written to Lord Laming to set out the terms of reference for his progress report on safeguarding.
More than a thousand young people from disadvantaged areas in England will be trained to inspect youth services under a four and a half million pound government pilot. The government is looking for a voluntary sector org ...
Schools are being urged to teach pupils about infection control as experts step up the fight against superbugs. The Health Protection Agency's e-Bug teaching resource uses interactive games and lesson handouts to explain ...
This consultation seeks views on updated statutory guidance that explains the roles of the lead member and director of children's services and how working together as a team, they can be most effective in driving clear i ...
This consultation seeks views on the range of milk products offered under the EU School Milk Scheme and the future of the national top-up.
Eating a high-fat diet in pregnancy may cause changes in the foetal brain that lead to over-eating and obesity early in life, research suggests.
The government is set to launch a standard contract that English councils can use to ensure children fostered through independent providers receive the right level of care.
More than one in three people believe that single people (37 per cent) and gay couples (38 per cent) should not be allowed to adopt according to a survey of over 1000 adults released by children’s charity, Action for Chi ...
Teams of young people will be supported by a third sector organisation to scrutinise local activities and youth services in a new £4.5 million pilot scheme announced today by Children and Young People’s Minister Beverley ...
Maternity services have accounted for nearly half of the value of clinical negligence claims against the NHS since 1995.
Not only is under-age drinking on the increase but alarming numbers of young people are now being treated in hospital for alcohol-related problems. Cherrill Hicks looks at the long-term implications
CSCI has updated its guidance on CRB checks which provide important protection for people who use social care services. You are required by law to get checks from the CRB if you are:
• applying for registration
• the ...
Statistics for May have been added.
Government is taking a new approach to warning children about the dangers they can face on our roads, following new research that shows today's 6-11-year-olds need bolder and more forthright communication about road safe ...
There is an unjustified and disturbing intolerance of children in the UK according to a shocking poll commissioned by Barnardo's. The poll shows that society casually condemns all children, with more than half the popula ...
Scientists hope to gain a greater understanding of disease and birth defects with a new imaging database that will map the expression of genes that control development. The research will log thousands of three dimensiona ...
Highlights and links to the latest resources relating to the Mental Health and Psychological Well-Being. Compiled montly by the CSIP Children, Young People and Families (CYPF) programme.
The Healthcare Commission is working with Ofsted and the Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary to undertake an urgent review of safeguarding of children in Haringey.
A specialist inspector from the Commission wil ...
Women who become mothers as teenagers or in their early 20s are more likely to suffer depression during pregnancy than older mothers, UK researchers say.
The government is working with a fatherhood thinktank to get councils, PCTs and children's services to raise their game when it comes to including fathers.
Inequalities in support for children with diabetes in England’s primary schools could be putting the health of up to 84 per cent (an estimated 6,500 children) of 5- to 11-year-olds with the condition at risk, according t ...
Children's secretary Ed Balls has asked John Coughlan, the director of children's services in Hampshire, to oversee safeguarding in Haringey while an urgent joint area review is underway....
The body that represents heads of youth services has applied for government funding to hold a series of conferences with senior managers from Connexions and youth offending teams.
The Association of Principal Youth a ...
I Can, the UK charity for children's communication skills, has welcomed evidence identifying a gene that appears to cause speech and language difficulties.
The discovery was published in The New England Journal of Med ...
Younger mothers are more likely to suffer from depression, which impacts on their child's health, according to the results of a long-term study unveiled today (Thursday 13 November).
The South London Child Developmen ...
Ministers have agreed that six artificial food colourings should be phased out after research found a link with hyperactivity in children.
The Food Standards Agency called for the voluntary removal earlier this year ...
Local Authorities across the West have joined forces with the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) to promote a 'sensible' approach to risk and combat some of the silly myths which have grown up around health and safety iss ...
The Real Meals cookbook, endorsed by top chef Phil Vickery, contains 32 classic recipes and sauces. The public nominated for inclusion the basic dishes every child should learn how to cook.
Rt Hon Beverley Hughes MP Minister for Children, Young People and Families, discusses why government has do not accepted any amendment to ban smacking tabled to the Children and Young Persons Bill now going through Parli ...
The new funding will expand YoungMinds Very Important Kids (VIK) group, the first and only national panel which provides a voice to 15 young people with mental health problems.
The NCSS will be running a series of regional events on participation in early 2009. The aim of the conferences will be to promote the inclusion of children, young people, their families and carers as equal stakeholders ...
As signalled in the Children’s Plan and in the well-being guidance, the DCSF and Ofsted have been working to develop strong school-level indicators of pupils’ well-being. These indicators will improve the information ava ...
Children’s Secretary Ed Balls announced today, at the launch of anti-bullying week, a clampdown on the bullying of children who have special educational needs (SEN) and disabilities with the launch of a film for school p ...
The new Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act updates the 1990 law to ensure that it is fit for purpose in the 21st Century and keeps the UK at the forefront of developments in treatment and research. The majority of th ...
Statement from Ed Balls. Includes an outline of "a number of failings of practice and management by the agencies involved", identified in the full Serious Case Review.
Children's minister Beverley Hughes has called on Lord Laming to consider progress on the recommendations of his review into Victoria Climbie's death, following the conviction of two men over the death of a baby in Harin ...
77 Local Authorities will receive additional funding of £25k each to provide activities on Friday and Saturday nights in neighbourhoods where crime and anti-social behaviour are a concern, Beverley Hughes Children and Yo ...
A healthy baby girl has been born in London following the world's first transplant of an entire ovary, it has been reported.
The 39-year-old conceived naturally after receiving the ovary from her twin sister.
A U ...
The Children's Workforce Development Council (CWDC) has published a new qualifications list, which all early years practitioners must adhere to from September next year.
The Department for Children, Schools and Families has today taken a big step towards keeping children safe across the country with over £1.6 million grant for practical safety education for children.
More evidence has emerged that babies born from frozen embryos are healthier than those that develop from fresh embryos, researchers say.
Three studies presented to a US fertility conference found frozen embryo babie ...
The government must intervene on pay and conditions for early years workers if it is to succeed in increasing skills, a report has urged.
Raising the Bar, commissioned by the Trades Union Congress (TUC) and written by ...
The number of failing nurseries in the poorest areas of England has nearly doubled in the past year, while there has been a marked improvement in the wealthiest districts, figures show.
Article in today's Guardian, M ...
Four councils have lost a judicial review brought against the government's decision to transfer the costs of care proceedings in England from the courts to local authorities.
Information for everyone working with and for disabled young people in transition from childhood to adulthood.
Workforce Review Team has recently uploaded the workforce summaries below. All of these workforce summaries can be found within the "Our Work" pages via the "Specialties and professions" and "Care groups" link.
Audio ...
Nine areas have been given the go-ahead to become "healthy towns" under a plan by ministers to combat obesity.
Dudley, Halifax, Sheffield, Tower Hamlets in London, Thetford in Norfolk, Middlesbrough, Manchester, Tewk ...
November issue now available
Article in today's Guardian [7 Nov 2008) states that the government's Sure Start programme appears to be succeeding in its aim of improving the chances of children born into deprived families, the latest evaluation shows ...
There were more than 4,000 suspensions of children aged 5 and under in England last year, prompting calls for teachers to have greater powers of restraint over violent and disruptive pupils.
The Prime Minister has called for renewed effort to tackle the “geography of inequality” characterised by drastically differing health standards and life expectancy between different countries and communities.
This is a public consultation document setting out proposals for how a new independent and transparent process for recommending Quality Outcome Framework (QOF) indicators led by NICE should work. The DH will publish the ...
ACT Children’s Palliative Care Training Grants are still available, but the deadline for applications is fast approaching. Apply now and make the most of this great opportunity to develop your skills without paying a pen ...
Individual Budgets for disabled children and their families are to be piloted in a small-scale study across England from January.
The NMC is asking nurses and midwives for feedback about Standards for medicines management.
New recommendations issued by the Food Standards Agency (FSA) on caffeine consumption during pregnancy call for a reduction of daily caffeine intake from no more than 300mg to less than 200mg. Current advice issued by NI ...
The November issue discusses recent research suggesting that attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a very real disorder rooted in brain development.
Smokers in a north-east London borough will not be able to foster children from January 2010 - unless there are "exceptional circumstances".
The ban was passed on Tuesday evening by Redbridge councillors who voted un ...
Sexual health and HIV charity Terrence Higgins Trust (THT) is offering a series of free training sessions for professionals working with young people across England and Wales. Starting in November, THT will provide train ...
The Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, Ed Balls, today announced the appointment of six new members to the Board of the School Food Trust (SFT).
This consultation seeks views on how to make new children's cancer measures clear and comprehensive.
Closing date: 30 January 2009
A six-year-old Derby boy taken into care was overweight, it has been revealed.
It is the first time obesity has been listed by social services in the city as one of the reasons for taking a child away from its family ...
Local authorities are being forced to revise their first assessments of supply and demand for childcare seven months after publishing them, a letter leaked to CYP Now shows.
Local authorities have backed a study commissioned by CYP Now that found care leavers need better support, despite government policies such as Care Matters.
CYP Now hosted the Life After Care event last week to launch ...
Psychiatrist Bruce Perry says many children's problems stem from the absence of positive engagement with adults.
"Our culture is becoming relationship impoverished," he says. "We are spending less time with people an ...
The London Mayor's strategy to reduce youth crime has received a lukewarm reception by those working in the sector.
Time for Action was launched on Monday (3 November) by the London Mayor's office in a bid to stem the ...
Ofsted plans to publish guidance for inspectors and providers of children's services.
Pilot schemes where disadvantaged young people are given money to spend on positive activities, have led to improved self-confidence and increased independence, according to an interim report.
An evaluation of the Emp ...
Coventry University is enlisting teenage mothers to challenge practitioners' attitudes and highlight the hostile attitudes they encounter from support services. Andrew Mickel reports
Many projects aim to overcome ster ...
Twenty of the areas worst hit by alcohol misuse are to receive support as part of a new programme which will help the local health service better identify and intervene with those at risk.
This news release gives deta ...
A man who suffered brain damage at his birth in 1970 is to receive a compensation package which could add up to more than £5m.
Women who drink a small amount of alcohol while pregnant do not increase their child's risk of behavioural problems, a study has suggested.
The University College London team classed "light" drinking as up to two dri ...
Maternity services are ‘buckling’ under the pressure of rising birth rates, inadequate funding and lack of staff, according to heads of midwifery (HOMs) surveyed by the RCM.
These statistics provide updated outcome data for 16 and 17-year-olds in education or work-based learning.
Almost 10 times more staff in the private day care sector have the highest level of childcare qualifications than in local authorities.
Figures from the Childcare and Early Years Providers survey disclosed to the Hou ...
Parents are being warned to be on the look out for a potentially-fatal winter baby infection.
The British Lung Foundation said October heralds the start of what is known as the RSV season.
Legislation should be in place to force local authorities to set up management boards for youth offending teams (YOTs), the head of prevention at the Youth Justice Board has said.
Bob Ashford, speaking at the Nationa ...
The new system for inspecting children's and youth services is beset with flaws, the Association of Directors of Children's Services (ADCS) has warned.
Directors of children's services should not chair local safeguarding children boards (LSCBs), children's minister Beverley Hughes has said.
The Appointments Commission has confirmed the names of the members it has appointed to the reconstituted Council, who will take office on 1 January 2009.
The RCN has called for the end of the postcode lottery in child protection, saying there is insufficient investment in the training of nurses and other professionals to safeguard children and young people.
One of the most crucial steps to improving patient safety in all areas of healthcare is to determine whether safety improvements are having a positive impact.
With the help of paediatric colleagues, the NHS Institute ...
A study has found that four of the babies born in the past 11 years to Ethiopian Jewish immigrants to Israel who were carrying HIV were unnecessarily infected with the virus by their mothers. This has led to demands that ...
The Government has announced 20 areas that will receive a share of £13m to tackle antisocial behaviour among young people.
The funding, originally announced as part of the Youth Taskforce Action Plan earlier this year ...
A quiet revolution is taking place in the health service in England which will shape the service for years to come.
Underpinning all the talk about choice, putting patients in control and driving up standards, is a c ...
A blood test that screens pregnant woman for pre-eclampsia long before symptoms develop could be available in the next five years, doctors predict.
The condition, which leads to the deaths of 1,000 babies each year i ...
The North West of England could be on the verge of a measles epidemic, the Health Protection Agency (HPA) says.
Twenty-two children have been diagnosed with the illness following an outbreak in parts of Cheshire, the ...
The Terrence Higgins Trust is offering free sexual health training to professionals working with young people across England and Wales.
The training sessions, which kick-off next month at the charity's office in Kings ...
UK researchers have raised concerns over the monitoring of the safety of single measles and rubella vaccines.
It comes after an unexpectedly high number of cases of anaphylactic shock after single vaccines given at p ...
Maternity services faced growing pressure on capacity and staff last year despite government commitments to improve safety and choice.
Newly released reports from regional midwifery officers show midwife numbers in ma ...
An inner city playground for children with disabilities has won praise for encouraging inclusivity.
Noam Hollander stands swaying on a large, wooden swing, feeling queasy. It is not surprising considering the bed swi ...
Full inspections of Sure Start children's centres are to be introduced in forthcoming legislation, the Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF) has confirmed.
£13m will be shared between 20 areas to help them to set up Intensive Intervention Projects that will challenge and support youngsters in trouble, Beverley Hughes Children and Young People’s Minister announced today on a ...
Changes to child maintenance which kick in today could increase child poverty according to charity One Parent Families/Gingerbread.
From today single parents on benefit have to decide whether to continue receiving ch ...
UNISON has welcomed a new European Directive which will give agency workers who have worked for a 12-week qualifying period the same rights as their permanent colleagues....
The speech and language therapy service is 'heading towards crisis', a new survey of the profession by Unite, the largest union in the country, has revealed....
On 22 October 2008, the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families Ed Balls and Baroness Morgan announced the terms of reference for the planned stocktake of Local Safeguarding Children Boards, a related study ...
The third round of the Parenting Fund provides a grant fund from the Department for Children, Schools and Families (formerly the DfES) of £16 million over two years (£8 million per year). It will be for a 24-month period ...
Changes to child benefit which kick in today could increase child poverty according to charity One Parent Families/Gingerbread.
Topics covered include risk-taking, TAC transition into school, the Move Programme, dealing with unwelcome change, families who do not sleep, rare chromosome disorders, a parent who feels professionals are not really con ...