Daily roundup 20 January: Abuse inquiry, supported housing, and free schools

Members of an independent inquiry into historic child sex abuse will appear before the home affairs committee for the first time today, despite not having a chairman. The BBC reports that Professor Alexis Jay, author of an inspection report into child sexual exploitation in Rotherham, will be among those to discuss the inquiry, which was sparked by allegations of paedophiles operating in Westminster in the 1980s.


New research by YMCA England shows that a housing crisis is leaving young people trapped in supported accommodation. The Delayed until further notice report, based on a survey of 300 people, warns that young people living in YMCA accommodation are struggling to move on to independent living due to a lack of suitable low-cost housing and high costs of living.


Ofsted will close down an “inadequate” Christian faith free school, just 18 months after it opened. A report by the inspectorate concluded Durham Free School was failing to prepare students for life in modern Britain and was prejudice towards other religions, giving the lowest ratings in leadership, achievement and behaviour. Education Secretary Nicky Morgan informed the Commons that the schools funding will be withdrawn because it has no immediate “prospect of improvement”, the Telegraph reports.


A mother and her three children spent the night on the waiting room floor at a London police station after being evicted from their home, the London Evening Standard reports. Zineb Saafan refused temporary accommodation offered by Newham Council because it was 50 minutes away from her children’s school and would mean 4am starts. She spent the night in Forest Gate police station after Newham Council, where she works as a cleaner, ruled she had made her family “intentionally homeless”.


Education reforms in the UK should be assessed based on their effectiveness, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has said. Andreas Schleicher, OECD’s director of education and skills, wants to see a more outcomes-driven approach taken by the government over education reforms, to see how useful they are. Teachers’ leaders have backed Schleichers comments, the Independent reports.


Many families' social problems go unnoticed by friends, family and neighbours, new research shows. A YouGov survey for family support charity Home-Start found more than half underestimated the number of families struggling with issues such as mental health problems, unemployment, disability and housing. Home-Start says this may be because families are putting on a "brave face" and trying to keep problems behind closed doors.