Judge slams Middlesbrough disability car 'join in' vandals
TEESSIDE'S top judge told two friends who saw a group vandalising a family's mobility car and decided to "join in" that they should be ashamed of themselves.
31 Oct 2010
News
Councils' body says cuts threaten home care for elderly
"Virtually all" councils in England and Wales could be forced to end home help for elderly and disabled people, the Local Government Association has said. The LGA, which represents 422 authorities, has warned MPs budget cuts may result in services being restricted to those with "critical" needs. A £3bn funding shortfall could affect people with dementia, Parkinson's disease and diabetes, it said.
31 Oct 2010
Volunteers could earn 'care credits' for helping others
People who volunteer to help the elderly or disabled could earn time credits which they could then redeem for their own care later in life.
30 Oct 2010
Disabled access to Wales' rail stations criticised
More than half of Wales' rail stations are not fully accessible to disabled people, according to a report. The Welsh assembly equality of opportunity committee issued the findings, highlighting "significant shortcomings", and calling for action. Arriva Trains Wales, which runs most of Wales' stations, said it was committed to improving access.
29 Oct 2010
Audit Commission says that many councils are slow on care budgets (Personal budgets)
Many councils are struggling with moves to give individual people their own budgets to spend on social care, a watchdog claims.
29 Oct 2010
Taste buds in lungs discovery could ease asthma
The discovery of "taste receptors" in the lungs rather than on the tongue could point the way to new medicines for asthma, it is suggested. Experiments in mice revealed that bombarding the receptors with bitter-tasting compounds helped open the airways, which could ease breathing. The University of Maryland study, published in Nature Medicine, may have implications for other lung diseases.
25 Oct 2010