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UK social workers have been issued with a government published framework to help them assess the requirements of children and their families thought to be in need. The guidelines form part of the Quality Protects initiative which has been funded to the tune of 375 million pounds sterling by the government, which aims to reduce poverty and help children living in poor or substandard households. The guidelines urge social workers to take an overall picture of the child and its family to make a final assessment.

The welfare of young children could be put at risk by the UK government's proposal to place pre-school regulation under the control of the Office of Standards in Education (Ofsted). Social workers play a vital role in monitoring the care of young children in pre-school organisations, whereas Ofsted would mainly be concerned with educational needs, according to the British Association of Social Workers. The government is proposing to establish a separate unit within Ofsted to meet both the social and educational needs of pre-school organisations.

A report by the UK Social Services Inspectorate (SSI) into the failure of Hackney social services in London to improve services, especially in the area of child care, has led to the resignation of the director of social services, Jeremy Oppenheim. The SSI criticised Hackney social services lack of strong leadership, claiming Oppenheim had failed to make improvements and lead a culture of instability. The SSI acknowledged some improvements in working practices but warned the department to maintain its committment to improving services.

The UK Audit Commission and the Social Services Inspectorate have undertaken a joint review of the social services department in Gateshead, England. This review indicates that both users and carers have concerns about the standard of services offered by the department. Areas of criticism include intensive support services for older people and the lack of services for people with learning difficulties at weekends and during holidays. The report indicates that there is a need to help users gain access to services efficiently.

The local authority of Manchester, England, could provide better social services, according to a review published jointly by the Audit Commission and the Social Services Inspectorate in Jun 1999. The review says that the authority has areas of good practice, but basic social services are not of a sufficiently high standard. Areas for improvement include the pre-crisis stage of need, cost and quality monitoring, service commissioning, and the achievement of agreed outcomes.

An independent inquiry into the deaths of four mentally-handicapped adults in a canal-boat incident has returned verdicts of accidental death. The four victims drowned after their boat caught in a lock gate in North Yorkshire, England, then rapidly sank. The inquiry vindicated the four carers in the party and found that usage of life jackets would not have prevented the tragedy. It did find, however, that the safety and health policy of the canal holiday's organizer Cumbria Council was not adequate for trips with disabled people.

UK Home Office Minister Paul Boeteng has announced plans to make amends for past government deficiencies in partnerships with the black voluntary sector. Boeteng admitted that past central and local governments had not respected black voluntary groups, but said the Labour government was introducing a new voluntary sector compact and promising funding to develop the black voluntary sector's infrastructure. The funding will amount to 2.6 million pounds sterling over three years.

A forum of charities has suggested that UK local authorities should be publicly shamed for failing to agree fair contracts with service providers. Several charities disputed Westminster Council's standard contract which would not allow for amendments, although Westminster claimed only one charity had formally refused to sign it. The Campaign for Fair Contracts aims to produce a common sense approach to the contractual process.

A Westminster Council care manager has been criticized by an independent inquiry for failing to provide adequate support for paranoid schizophrenic Magdi Elgizouli prior to the fatal attack on police constable Nina Mackay. Properly managed treatment would have prevented Elgizouli from stabbing Mackay while resisting arrest. The inquiry recommends greater co-operation between health authorities and the police when dealing with the mentally ill, with the police having failed to discuss Elgibouli sufficiently with his social worker prior to the attempted arrest.

The UK Audit Commission has found variations in the performance of social services departments but says that, in general, services improved between 1994 and 1997. The total number of children in care moved more than three times in one year, for example, fell by 25% overall between 1994 and 1997, but this figure for the London boroughs rose from 6.4% to 6.7%. Statistics which show a good general level of improvement include inspection of residential homes. Equipment delivery times have shown no improvement.

Adrienne Kelbie, aged 28, has been appointed director for Scotland of the National Lottery Charities Board (NLCB). Kelbie joined the NLCB as operations and grants manager, responsible for a budget of 30 million pounds sterling; and has been acting director since January 1999. Kelbie's previous career includes the creation of Cambuslang New Opportunities, a development agency in South Lanarkshire.

UK town and parish councils are represented at European Union level by former Unison social services officer, John Findlay, who believes the experienced he gained in his former role has stood him in good stead for his new job. Findlay became the national officer for social services in 1991, eventually representing up to 350,000 social service workers when Unison was formed in 1993.

Helping families cope with the rigors of parenthood through education, support and financial aid will be the main of the National Family and Parenting Institute (NFPI), according to its chief executive Mary Macleod. Having a career based in the care and protection of children has helped Macleod develop her role within child protection services and eventually become the head of the new government run institution.

Welfare policies operated by the UK Labour government could place extra pressure on the already overworked voluntary sector, leading to many people leaving the service altogether, according to a survey carried out for the National Centre for Volunteering. Many volunteer organisations are becoming increasingly dependent on the government for funding, reducing their independent status. Workers in the sector believe the government will increasingly turn to them to undertake non-essential social services work.

UK residential care promotion organisation, the Social Care Association (SCA) has elected Dick Clough as its new chief executive in 1999. Clough is a strong believer in the importance of residential care within the provision of social care, and points to the large numbers of children in the residential care system. Clough oversees a rapidly expanding organisation which produces a turnover of up to 500,000 pounds sterling per year,

The services provided by the social services department in Hampshire, England, are excellent or good, according to 63% of service users and carers surveyed as part of a joint review by the Audit Commission and the Social Services Inspectorate. This compares with an average of 72% for the local authorities reviewed so far. Some 18% of users and clients reported that services were poor or very poor, 7% above the average. However, the Hampshire social services department was found to serve its community well.

Summarizes research on archaeology at the Albright Institute of Archaeological Research. Hellenistic archive from Tel Qedesh; Influence of Hellenism on Hasmoneans; Levantine communities of the Late Bronze Age.

Focuses on the criticisms raised by British Member of Parliament Bernie Grant against the police for mishandling information on the deaths of Stephen Lawrence and Roger Sylvester while on police custody. Background to the two cases; Problems with the police investigation of the two murders; Campaign launched by family members of Sylvester to demand for justice.

Focuses on the call by humanitarian agencies for the international community to provide immediate assistance to refugees fleeing Kosovo, Serbia amid reports of widespread atrocities by Serbian forces. Features of the campaign by the Refugee Council; Details of the bombing campaign launched by the North Atlantic Treaty Organization in Kosovo; Background to the conflict.

Reports on Greater London Assembly candidate Patti Boulaye's denial of newspaper reports that she supported apartheid. Filing of legal charges against the newspaper `The Guardian'; Impact of the report on Boulaye's personal life and career; Comment on British newspapers' reporting about Blacks.

Reports on Tory Party Assembly candidate Patti Boulaye's denial of race-related comments that she allegedly said in an interview for the tabloid `Express.' Excerpts of comments allegedly made by Boulaye; Labour MP Bernie Grant's criticism of the tabloid report; Boulayer husband and agent Stephen Komlosy's dismissal of the tabloid report as rubbish.