Daily roundup 1 May: Tower Hamlets, child benefit, and the 'bedroom tax'

The former president of the Association of Directors of Children's Services (ADCS) has been drafted in to Tower Hamlets Council as part of a team tasked with ensuring good governance until a new mayor and top team are put in place. The Department for Communities and Local Government said Alan Wood, and the other commissioners being appointed, will be in place until 31 October. Former Tower Hamlets mayor, Lutfur Rahman, was last week banned from office over vote rigging.


David Cameron has "all but ruled out" cuts to child benefit according to the Daily Mail. The newspaper said Cameron was asked about the issue repeatedly last night by members of the public on a special edition of the BBC’s Question Time programme. Asked if he would cut child benefit and child tax credit after the election, he replied: "I don’t want to do that."


The Labour party’s first act in government would be scrapping the so-called "bedroom tax", party leader Ed Miliband is to announce. According to ITV News, new funds would be made available and distributed though local authorities to balance the full costs of the tax for all families that currently pay it.


Schools are having to act like “mini welfare states” by providing food and clothing for children, according to the National Association of Head Teachers (NAHT). BBC News reports that a survey of 2,000 head teachers in England found many schools are providing spare uniforms, food and even washing clothes and providing showers. The NAHT has warned that the support is costing schools £43.5m a year.


Child protection training has been provided for hundreds of thousands of sports coaches across the UK through an NSPCC scheme. This year marks the NSPCC’s Child Protection in Sport Unit's 20th anniversary and more than 410,000 coaches have received the training through specialist workshops, with an average of 30,000 coaches taking part each year.


Local youth clubs, charities and groups that submitted projects to the Aviva Community Fund have the whole of May to win enough support to secure funding. Members of the public can vote on the website.