Daily roundup 9 February: Parental rights, CSE funding, and revenge porn

A future Labour government would double the amount of paid paternity leave available to new fathers from two to four weeks, the party’s leader Ed Miliband has announced. He also pledged to increase statutory paternity pay by more than £120 a week to £260 a week, paid for by savings in tax credits. Labour says only about 55 per cent of new fathers take the full two weeks off because of financial pressures forcing them to return to work, the BBC reports.


An increase in child sexual exploitation (CSE) cases has prompted Barnardo’s to launch an appeal for funding to cope with the demand. The charity says it needs £370,000 to fund more support workers to help children affected by CSE at its 47 specialist centres. Last year, Barnardo’s worked with 2,118 sexually exploited children, almost double the number it supported in 2010.


A helpline has been launched for victims of revenge porn, in a bid to tackle the growing problem of non-consensual sharing of explicit photographs online. According to the Guardian, South West Grid for Learning will run the specialist service, providing support to victims of the crime, which can affect people as young as 11. Victims will be provided with help about how to get free legal advice, and police and websites will work alongside the helpline to try and get non-consensual explicit images removed.


Plans to close more than half of Liverpool’s children’s centres have been criticised as “disproportionate and ill-thought out”. A senior children’s centre worker has told the Liverpool Echo the proposals to close the centres, with the loss of 63 job, will impact hardest on the most deprived families, The unnamed worker, said the city would also end up paying more than it will save from closing the centres as children and families struggle without the help they currently receive.


Plans designed to close the attainment gap between pupils from poor backgrounds and their peers in Scotland are to be unveiled, the BBC reports. Scottish First Minster, Nicola Sturgeon will draw on successful schemes with a proven track record, including the London Challenge, which aimed to get every young person in London receiving good or better education. The scheme will focus on boosting numeracy, literacy, and health and wellbeing in some of the most disadvantaged communities.


Prince Charles has described the radicalisation of young people as “alarming” and “one of the greatest worries”, the BBC reports. The Prince of Wales also believes part of the reason some young people are radicalised is because they are in a “search for adventure and excitement at a particular age”. He added that The Prince’s Trust is battling radicalisation, by finding alternatives for young people to channel their energy into constructive paths.