Daily roundup 5 May: Sexting, Rotherham CSE, and motherhood

Young people should not automatically be landed with a criminal record if they send sexual images to each other, campaigners have said. According to the Guardian, the campaigners believe it shows how disconnected the political establishment is from changes to social values and technology.


Authorities in Rotherham were warned about child sexual exploitation in 2003 and 2006, according to fresh evidence. BBC News reports that a police drugs analyst highlighted the problem of abuse and grooming of girls by organised gangs but council officials and police took no action.


UK women have more than double the chance of dying in pregnancy and childbirth compared to countries like Poland and Belarus, the Guardian reports. The findings come from the State of the World’s Mothers report by Save the Children, with the UK coming 24th in the list of the world's best places to be a mother, up two places from last year.


Extra funding should be used by schools to tackle mental health problems among poor pupils, according to schools minister David Laws. The Liberal Democrat MP told a National Association of Head Teachers conference that children’s mental health services are not good enough, the Times reports.


Children are unable to speak properly because parents are not talking and playing with them enough, according to shadow education secretary Tristram Hunt. According to BBC News, Hunt said parents need to engage with their children from an early age and get “down on all fours”.


An independent investigation into the conduct of a former Rotherham council children's services manager has cost £109,801, the Doncaster Free Press reports. The inquiry into Jackie Wilson, who was responsible for safeguarding children in Rotherham between 2002 and 2007 before moving to Doncaster council, was launched following an independent report last year into the Rotherham's handling of child sexual exploitation cases. Wilson, now director of transformation at Doncaster Children’s Services Trust, was cleared of any wrongdoing when the investigation was completed in March.