Daily roundup 15 May: Dental neglect, benefit cap, and criminal convictions

Dentists in Wales are not referring children suffering from dental problems due to neglect to social services because they lack confidence, a Cardiff University study has claimed. According to BBC News, the report concluded that many dentists recognise oral health concerns but are reluctant to act on suspected abuse.


Thousands of families that had their benefits capped have now found work, government figures show. The Daily Mail reports there is now at least one family member in employment among more than a quarter of the 58,700 households subjected to the benefits cap since April 2013.


More than 16,000 people with criminal convictions applied to work as teachers or teaching assistants in the last three years. The Telegraph reports that a freedom of information request found that applicants had a combined total of more than 44,000 offences between them.


A father with a violent past who convinced social workers to let him care for his four-year-old daughter has been jailed for 21 years after beating her to death. The Mirror reports that Alexa-Marie Quinn was repeatedly beaten by 31-year-old Carl Wheatley in the weeks before she died, losing two teeth and suffering more than 60 injuries.


GCSEs in home economics, health and social care, and environmental science are to be scrapped, according to exam regulator Ofqual. The Times reports that the decision follows a review of qualifications that overlap with other subjects.