Daily roundup: Children's bill debate, Labour reshuffle, and Hull cuts

Peers are being urged to back two major amendments to the Children and Families Bill when it is debated in the House of Lords today. A collection of 40 charities, organisations and academics are calling for foster carers to be given the right to stay in a placement until they reach 21-years-old, instead of aged 17 as is often the case at the moment. While the Local Government Association and voluntary adoption agencies want the peers to throw out proposals in the Bill to remove local authorities from the process of recruiting and assessing new adoptive parents.

Manchester Central MP Lucy Powell has been promoted to shadow minister for childcare and early years, while Birmingham Selly Oak MP Steve McCabe has been appointed shadow education minister as part of Labour leader Ed Miliband’s shadow cabinet reshuffle. Powell said she is "delighted" about her new role and is keen to tackle the "childcare crisis". She replaces Sharon Hodgson, who has been moved to the women and equalities brief, while former education minister Lisa Nandy has been promoted to the Labour Cabinet Office.

Unite is considering balloting for industrial action staff working at Kingston-upon-Hull Council due to concerns over the impact that £48m of proposed cuts could have on services and working practices. The savings would be implemented in 2014/15, and come as a result of a drop in government funding to the council. Unite said that if the plans are not backed during a six-week consultation, the council could sack its entire 6,733 workforce and employ them on inferior employment contracts.

The Advertising Standards Agency (ASA) has banned a Home Office advert telling illegal immigrants to go home, saying it was misleading. The campaign saw two vans drive around London for a week in July, carrying the message "Go home or face arrest". The ASA received 224 complaints about the vans from individuals, campaign groups, academics and the Labour peer Lord Lipsey, the BBC reports.

Baby Peter Connelly’s mother, Tracey, is to be freed from prison on the order of the Parole Board. She was jailed indefinitely in May 2009 for causing or allowing the death of 17-month-old Peter in 2007. The Parole Board has recommended her release following a second review of her case, Sky News reports. Baby Peter died with more than 50 injuries despite being on the at-risk register and receiving 60 visits from social workers, police and health professionals in Haringey.

Children’s centres in Cambridgeshire are at risk due to a budget cut if nearly a quarter. Cambridgeshire County Council has agreed to launch a consultation aimed at cutting funding for the facilities by £1.5 million – 22 per cent of the total budget, the Cambridgeshire News reports. There are currently 40 children’s centres across the county.