Daily roundup 2 March: Stress, medical cannabis, and commissioner

Young people spend more than six hours a day feeling stressed or worried, a poll has found. The poll, conducted by UK Youth found that money, appearance and career worries as well as fears about the future mean a large chunk of their time is spent feeling anxious or under pressure. One in 10 young people said they feel they have no-one to turn to discuss their concerns, leaving them battling through alone. A further 67 per cent admitted they had come across problems in their life where they felt they had nobody to lean on for help.


The Home Office has said it is considering allowing a medical cannabis trial to treat a six-year-old boy with a rare form of epilepsy. The BBC reports it previously turned down requests by the family of Alfie Dingley, from Warwickshire, to legally take the drug. But now ministers say they are "exploring every option", following a meeting with the family.


The Department of Education will be sending in a special commissioner in the next few weeks after the latest Ofsted report for children's services in Buckinghamshire. The Bucks Herald reports that the commissioner will assess whether children's social care services should be removed from local authority control for a period of time, in order to bring about improvements.


Barnet Youth Zone has appointed Tony Lewis to be its chief executive. The Barnet Times reports that that Lewis worked for Connexions as a personal adviser to young people and spent six years at the Barnet youth offending team. He will spend the first six months of his role working at a new youth zone in Wirral where he will act as deputy chief executive before returning to London to work on the fundraising campaign and recruitment for the Barnet Youth Zone, which is due to open next year.


A 14-year-old boy has been charged with the murder of a 17-year-old boy in east London. The BBC reports that Lord Promise Nkenda - known as Promise - from Newham was found dead in Goldwing Close, Canning Town, at about 8.40pm on 14 February. The accused boy will appear at Stratford Youth Court today. Two 17-year-old boys have already been charged with murder.


Together for Short Lives has launched the second round of its Improving Transitions for Young People Fund, which will back new initiatives aiming to transform the experiences of young people with life-limiting conditions as they move from children's to adult services. The fund will make awards of £40,000 to £150,000 for up to 30 months, and is open to organisations across the UK, including voluntary sector organisations; NHS and other statutory organisations; and social enterprises that offer services free at the point of delivery.