Daily roundup 1 February: Gang violence, Daniel Pelka and sexual abuse

A body set up after the 2011 riots and designed to tackle gang violence is to be scrapped by the government, a leaked letter has revealed. The Guardian reports the Home Office letter to local authority staff involved in the Ending Gang Violence and Exploitation Peer Review Network said “frontline team support and associated funding will be ending at the end of March”.


A man convicted of killing his four-year-old stepson has been found dead in prison just six months after his partner, the boy’s mother, killed herself. The Guardian reports Mariusz Krezolek was serving a life jail sentence for murdering Daniel Pelka. Daniel’s mother Magdelena Luczak was also jailed for life but killed herself in her cell last year.


Demand on Barnardo's services have more than doubled in five years because of a surge in the number of children seeking help for sex abuse, the charity has said. The Telegraph reports Barnardo's provided help to 3,200 vulnerable children last year – more then double the 1,190 children in 2010.


Tottenham MP David Lammy has been appointed to lead a government review of racism in the justice system by Prime Minister David Cameron. The Independent reports Lammy will investigate evidence of discrimination against black defendants and other ethnic minorities.


Poor children are more likely to realise their full potential if they live in the capital, a report claims. According to the London Evening Standard, a report by the cross-party Social Mobility and Child Poverty Commission showed the UK’s top 10 places for social mobility are in London, with Westminster topping the list.


A new emergency accommodation service for young people is to open in Sheffield through £200,000 from the People’s Post Code Lottery. Awarded to Depaul UK, the money will be used to set up a Nightstop Service, which sees volunteers and their families offer homeless young people with a bed, shower and food.


Leaders of Scotland’s labour-led council’s have warned budget cuts could have devestating consequences on young people. The Scotsman reports more than a dozen bosses issued the warning to Finance Secretary John Swinney, who has given authorities until today to respond to a funding deal for 2016/17.