Daily roundup: Buses, measles and youth custody
Tristan Donovan
Friday, April 19, 2013
Bus cuts hit young people; two million at risk of measles, and a secure training centre is rated good, all in the news today.
Rising bus fares and cuts to rural routes are leaving young people in Yorkshire stranded and unable to attend training or job interviews, Labour MPs from the region have warned. The Yorkshire Post reports that the MPs are worried that bus cutbacks will force young people out of rural areas. Transport minister Norman Baker said it was up to councils to decide how much to spend on buses.
Two million children could be at risk of catching measles because they have not been vaccinated, the Express reports. Dr Helen Bedford of University College London's Institute of Child Health told the paper: "There have been outbreaks all around the country. So yes, there is a chance of further outbreaks. Parents need to be encouraged to find out if their children have been vaccinated and if not, go out and do it." The warning follows an outbreak of the disease in Swansea that has infected 808 people so far.
Rainsbrook Secure Training Centre has been rated good by Ofsted. Inspectors said the youth custody establishment, which is near Rugby, has "positive and constructive relationships" with the young people, outstanding teaching and an effective approach to addressing bullying. However, inspectors said the centre needs to improve its child protection policy to ensure the local authority is notified of concerns in a timely manner. But Andrew Neilson, director of campaigns at the Howard League of Penal Reform, expressed concern at the inspectors' findings. "Unclear practice leading to the continued full-searching of children, recorded misleadingly and distastefully as 'dignity searches', serious concerns regarding child protection issues and unnecessarily handcuffing children when they are in need of external medical assistance, show an inexcusable lack of care," he said.
Children in Scotland has received £784,744 over two years from the Big Lottery Scotland's Third Sector Early Intervention Fund. The charity said the grant would secure the future of the organisation until at least 2015. Other children's organisations in Scotland have also received money from the fund including Action for Children, Contact a Family Scotland, Play Scotland and YMCA Scotland.
And finally, ministers are considering writing letters of congratulation to pupils who get top grades in their GCSEs in the hope of encouraging more of them to go to university, The Times reports. Universities minister David Willetts said: "I am working with the Department for Education to see whether we can better target information at pupils from poorer backgrounds achieving A and B grades."