News
August 2008
You don't have to be thin to be healthy
Commercial forces are putting the NHS under pressure
Plans to help millions to pay bills
Spouses and civil partners to receive more when partner dies without leaving a will
A Comparative Review of Workfare Programmes in the United States, Canada and Australia
The Personalisation of Adult Social Care in Rural Areas
Awareness and Use of Bus Concessionary Fares
Terminally ill cancer patients occupy drug adviser's HQ
Social injustice cutting life expectancy
Government to cut red tape for 33,000 charities
Give the social care minister some status
Health screening: Doctors search for 100,000 at risk of early heart attack
Treatment to stop blindness finally approved for NHS
Get your increased winter fuel payment before Christmas
Exploring Disability, Family Formation and Break-up
Over 60s: Don't miss out on extra cash
Publication of DWP research report: In and out of work pilot evaluation
Get your increased winter fuel payment before Christmas
Equality experts, business and unions to help make Britain fairer
Pensioners outnumber under-16s for first time
Improving accessibility on the railways
Healthcare watchdog keeps up the pressure to improve learning disability services
Board announced for Government Equalities Office
Valuing People Now: Transfer of the responsibility for the commissioning of social care for adults with a learning disability from the NHS to local government and transfer of the appropriate funding
Signs don't worry the old - being ignored does
Cancer survival rates for young rise
Study shows 11% increase since 1979, but tailored treatment could drive rates higher
Did you know that there is now a wheelchair accessible path up Latrigg near Keswick? It is the first time in 20 odd years that I have been able to hill walk.
Five Years On: Delivering the diabetes national service framework
Consultation on Direct Payments Regulations
The chance to live a full life - young people with learning disabilities need better options when they leave school
Call for end to postcode prescribing
Regulator acts to protect at-risk care home residents
Equality impact assessments:
Pension credit automated review at end of assessed income period (rapid review)
Changes to the amount of winter fuel payment for winter 2008-09
NHS is failing the over-50s - people aged 50 and over are not receiving basic standards of healthcare, according to new research
We have invited Minister for disabled people Ann Maguire on to You and Yours this coming Monday to field your questions about the new benefit rules; and we'd welcome your queries and concerns for her. Do contact us via the website.
New drive to improve healthy eating
Cancer: How peer-to-peer online support is helping cancer sufferers
Clinical trials test potential of hallucinogenic drugs to help patients with terminal illnesses
Equality Policy for Judicial Office Holders with Disabilities: Six-month review
NHS: Barbara Young: 'Talking softly and carrying a big stick' - John Carvel questions the new Care Quality Commission chairwoman about the future regulation of health and social care in England
Up the garden path to contented care - it's astonishing that a country that values its gardens as highly as the UK doesn't integrate garden activities into care
Time runs out for Tinsley towers - Sheffield landmark to be demolished over the bank holiday weekend
Long-term care - as people live longer, Britain needs new ways to meet the rocketing bill for long-term care
Creditors owed GBP60m after collapse of care home
Untested drugs offer cancer hope - NHS gives go-ahead to experimental treatments for hundreds of patients who have failed to respond to conventional cures
Diabetes link to one in 10 deaths
Kidney cancer drugs judged too costly for 3,000 NHS patients - four new medicines that could prolong the life of more than 3,000 patients with advanced kidney cancer should not be funded by the NHS in England and Wales, the government's advisers on the cost-effectiveness of drugs said last night
Purnell orders review into sanctions in benefits system - a wholesale review of the conditions attached to benefits, including those given to lone parents, the unemployed and the disabled, has been ordered by the work and pensions secretary, James Purnell
2nd October 2008
There is a one-day seminar on sensory impairment and the impact this
has on the quality of life for older people and it is now open for registration.
Click here for further details and on-line registration. Places are limited, so sign up
early to avoid disappointment!
A 'User Voice' Study: Jobcentre Plus customers' perspective on the Department for Work and Pensions and the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills' strategy for skills
Five Expert Patients Programmes courses arerunning this Autumn for disabled people and people with long term health problems.
Full of Ideas Toolkit: UK Older People's Day
Health and safety reforms set to save small business £300 million
Work recovery: Good for business, good for you
Attitude to health affects eating habits
Resettlement boost for learning disabled
The care services minister, Ivan Lewis, has announced GBP96m of new funding to support the resettlement in the community of people with learning disabilities who were formerly housed in NHS 'campus' accommodation.
Putting people first - Equality and diversity matters two
What does a heart attack feel like?
A new survey from the British Heart Foundation (BHF) has found that four out of 10 of us get our information about heart attacks from Hollywood movies or TV dramas, but the "Hollywood heart attack" is dangerously misleading and because of it, many of us ignore the real symptoms until it is too late.
Health watchdog highlights NHS dental care failures
A fifth of people in England have been unable to get a checkup for the last two years.
July 2008
You may wish to look at this document and send in response.
A Green Paper has now been published entitled "No one written off; reforming welfare to reward responsibility".
go to: www.dwp.gov.uk/noonewrittenoff
The focus is on working age adults and it continues the government's theme of getting more people into work who are currently receiving Incapacity Benefit or Income Support..
It clearly has significant implications for disabled people on benefits, particularly those deemed as 'not severely disabled'
A new project aims to tackle the shortage of carers in rural areas
Keeping older people fit and active is not a waste of money - services to meet the needs of an ageing population can also help reduce care costs
Treatment heralds Alzheimer's breakthrough
NHS criticised over neglect of people with learning disability
Plans to deter inconsiderate parking announced
Communities in Control: Equality impact assessment
Independent Inquiry into Access to Healthcare for People with Learning Disabilities
New Deal for Carers: Task force reports
Impact Assessment of Moving Ahead with Electronic Prescription Service
More Support, Higher Expectations: The role of conditionality in improving employment outcomes
Disability Discrimination Act: Rail services - Consultation response summary
Consultation on Prohibition of Double Parking and Parking at Dropped Footways
Lifetime Homes, Lifetime Neighbourhoods: Easyread version
Bedside phone firm in administration
Bankers decide no hope of financial recovery for heavily criticised supplier of NHS hospital services
Walking for 45 minutes helps to control diabetes
Blood sugar levels can be kept in check by exercise, reducing need for additional drugs, scientists find
Blood pressure drugs may cut risk of Alzheimer's by 40%
Doctors given immediate funds to investigate medical records of a further 3 million patients
Able to Work: Realising potential evaluation
Disability Living Allowance: Disallowed claims
Ouch! ... it's a disability thing.
New rights to give disabled travellers a better journey
Access to Air Travel for Disabled People: Code of practice
Today's (23rd July) two items about welfare reform - there are 6 more items if you scroll down to July 22nd.
James Purnell Webchat: Transcript
How will the welfare reform green paper impact the most marginalised? We asked those who work with the long-term unemployed
Personal budgets: A report drawing on the views of service users and practitioners illuminates the debate about person-centred care budgets
Pensioners win battle for sight-saving drug
Foundations to take home improvements for older and disabled people to the next level
Health and Social Care Act 2008 receives Royal Assent
Commission for Social Care Inspection: Annual report 2007-08
Pension, Disability and Carers Service Business Plan 2008-09
Disabled teenagers should still get a real education - there is no justification for reading primary school books to disabled teenagers - it means they miss out on life even more, says Jane Muir
90% of people with mental illness 'face discrimination' - families, employers and neighbours are most likely to stigmatise mental health problems, survey finds
Drug trial hope for men with prostate cancer - new treatment could allow sufferers to work and travel and potentially save lives
Local funders committed to distribute grants to third sector
Confidence in Caring: A framework for best practice
Aiming High for Disabled Children: Short breaks implementation guidance
Welfare reform - 22nd July
James Purnell Webchat: Transcript
No one written off: Reforming welfare to reward responsibility
Consultation - No One Written Off
Threat to help in town that needs it most - Hull faces the loss of its Citizens Advice bureau
Written Ministerial Statement by Andy Burnham on Free Swimming
Identifying Hidden Need: Working with the third sector to engage with hard-to-reach groups
Councils unprepared for England's ageing population
Don't Stop Me Now: Preparing for an ageing population
Why are MPs silent on mental ill health?
A new survey shows that one in five MPs has experienced mental health problems. So why isn't there more openness on the subject,
Long-term care: Audit Commission claims councils fail to inform the elderly about volunteering, leisure and social activities
Facing the housing challenge: Action today, innovation for tomorrow
£286 million to improve end of life care for all
End of Life Care Strategy: Promoting high quality care for all adults at the end of life
Are We Choosing Health? The impact of policy on the delivery of health improvement programmes and services
Social care: Assets that can't be bought - the consumer model of care turns every service into a transaction
Workers strike over pay - hundreds of thousands of local government workers started a two-day strike today in a dispute over pay that is expected to lead to the closure of schools and cause uncollected rubbish to mount up
More diversity in public appointments
Would you guess from these items that I did a politics degree?
Straw publishes white paper on Lords reform
Oral Ministerial Statement by Jack Straw on Lords Reform
An Elected Second Chamber: Further reform of the House of Lords - White paper
This has a local effect so might be worth looking at.
More than the sum of their parts: Partnerships seal deal to increase economic growth
Improving Educational Outcomes for Children with Dyslexia
Progress Report on Department for Transport Disability Equality Scheme 2006-09
Care self-funders to receive independent resolution of complaints
Top Ministers in Leeds to seek views on new laws
Exploring Service Needs and Access in Rural Areas Following a Stroke
Healthcare Commission Annual Report 2007-08: Making healthcare safer for patients
Call to subject charities to human rights - human rights and freedom of information legislation should be extended to cover charities and social enterprises that deliver public services
Marie Curie empowered to deliver end of life care at a local level
White paper delivers power shift to local people
Stronger Voice, Better Care: Local involvement networks explained
Delivering Care Closer to Home: Meeting the challenge
Fraud to cost GBP1bn of benefit payments
Commons public accounts committee reveals that GBP2.7bn was lost last year
Adults Facing Chronic Exclusion Programme
Guidance on Redemption of NHS Optical Vouchers
NHS 60: Consumer-style choice in the NHS isn't working. What we need is a holistic attitude to care, and a focus on the huge importance of staff morale
GBP128m paid in bonuses to civil servants
Rewards contrast with 0% pay rise which Department for Work and Pensions imposed on 40% of its staff
Doctors urge 18 certificate for 'pro-smoking' films
Children and young people encouraged by media glamorisation of smoking in cinema and television
Two speeches from Stephen Timms
National Local Employment Partnership Awards
Ouch! ... it's a disability thing.
Patient voice central to new direction for primary care
Our NHS, Our Future: NHS next stage review
NHS patients to get free healthcare throughout EU
European Union governments voted today to let patients choose cross-border healthcare
WIN A GBP2,000 TECHNOLOGY GRANT COURTESY OF FREE BROADBAND PROVIDER TALKTALK
If you are a UK-based not-for-profit organisation or community group looking to extend your work through the use of the internet, you could be eligible for a TalkTalk Innovation in the Community Award. Thirty winners will receive cash grants of GBP2,000 each to fund technology related projects. Five overall winners will also win a one-to-one workshop with celebrity dotcom entrepreneur and co-founder of lastminute.com Martha Lane Fox.
Local employment partnership award winners revealed
More support to deliver affordable housing
Registering disapproval - for people requiring care, personal assistants are a lifeline. But new research on the views of the employed and employers reveals that the two sides could be heading for conflict over regulation
Sixty Years of the National Health Service: A proud past and a healthy future
A Consultation on the NHS Constitution
Darzi plan offers patients more choices and more information
Former patients make bid to reopen psychiatric hospital
Former residents of an acclaimed psychiatric hospital are campaigning to have it reopened
June 2008
The NHS at 60
New constitution to secure the NHS for the future
Next stage for NHS: Highest quality care for all
Prime Minister welcomes 'bold vision' for NHS
High Quality Care for All: NHS Next Stage Review final report
Disability: Has a new show marrying disability and fashion taken the reality genre too far
It used to be the cue for collecting your free bus pass and spending more time pruning the roses. But in an era of improved healthcare, wonder drugs and longer lives, hitting 65 is no longer synonymous with frailty and sickness. We ask the new generation of pensioners what the second 'coming of age' means to them
Clients to get control over money spent on support
Elderly and disabled people who receive care from their local authority to get new rights
Equality: Watered-down version of plans to combat workplace discrimination welcomed by unions
Equality essential for Britain - Age discrimination to be banned
Research on Eliminating Age Discrimination in Social Services and Mental Health Services
Employment and Support Allowance
Disabled Children: Numbers, characteristics and local service provision
Welfare to work: Plan offers unemployed job centre choice
The work and pensions secretary proposes allowing benefit claimants to choose between private, public and voluntary job centres
Harman and Hutton: High hopes for trade union equality representatives
Election Day: Weekend voting - Consultation
Gaps found in care for deafblind children
Many local authorities are not following guidance; only one third of children in need have been identified. Anna Bawden reports
National Welfare to Work Reform Conference: Mapping the route towards full employment
Campaign launched to help people with learning disabilities into work
Almost two-thirds of people with a learning disability are keen to work but prejudice means only 10% have a paid job
Equalities department not sure if diversity targets being met - Government Equalities Office does not know whether it complies with Whitehall diversity targets
New help for children with visual and hearing impairments
Three items of news about dementia - the last of which is information about a consultation
Use of 'chemical cosh' drugs to be restricted
More help for people with dementia
Transforming the Quality of Dementia Care: Consultation on a national dementia strategy
And if you live in Leeds ....................................
How Jimmy's made the journey from workhouse to 21st century hospital
Sixty years on, St James's, known as Jimmy's, is now the leading hospital of one of the largest NHS trusts
Big progress in Government and industry drug price deal
Healthcare Commission: Newsletter - Updated
NHS at 60: The revolution that never ends
The NHS is in better health at 60 than it was at 50
Sluggish conditions in the property market give us a chance to rethink housing policies
Nursing quality to be measured for compassion of care
Nurses to be rated on their smiles and compassion
Plan to improve quality in the NHS unveiled by the health secretary, Alan Johnson, in run-up to 60th anniversary of the health service
Response to the Rail Vehicle Accessibility (Interoperable Rail System) Regulations 2008 Consultation
Commission welcomes creation of a national equality taskforce
Reading and writing classes to be compulsory for unemployed
Reading, writing and computer classes will become compulsory for unemployed people who need them, James Purnell announced today
Row over plans to shake up family doctor service in England turn increasingly bitter
Minister accuses doctors over super-surgery petition
Government says 1.2m names in campaign against polyclinics misled by BMA
Sign on for benefits, sign up for skills
Strategic Health Authorities' Visions for Better Healthcare
Progress with the NHS system reform programme
Watchdogs publish verdict on NHS reforms so far
Wife who wants to die wins legal round
MS-sufferer demanding euthanasia travel partner declared to have an arguable case
Painful reminder about problems of care
Christopher Manthorp on politicians' policies for the elderly, which recently included appointing Michael Parkinson as dignity ambassador
Social care: Law change in prospect
David Brindle reports on plans to unify social care laws
Carers strategy includes GBP150m to fund respite care and GBP38m for annual health checks
Self-care: A national view in 2007 compared to 2004-05
Consultation on assessment of adult social care
UK ensures right to work overtime can continue
Take-up of Income-related Benefits: Latest report
Carers at the Heart of 21st Century Families and Communities: A caring system on your side, a life of your own
Consultation on Performance Assessment of Adult Social Care 2008-09
Health inequality getting worse
Health secretary outlines fresh plans to tackle health inequalities as he admits that the health gap between rich and poor is widening
Unpaid carers save public services GBP87bn
Carers' unpaid work saves the state GBP87bn but many put their own health at risk, survey reveals
Charity sets up virtual advice service
A charity that helps the parents of disabled children contact each other and access services has set up an office in the virtual world of Second Life
Diabetes cases could reach 4m by 2025
Government expands its 'healthy towns' initiative, aimed at tackling the problem of obesity
Massive sport reform to spearhead 2012 legacy plans
Free swimming plan for over 60s at the forefront
Free swimming hailed as vision for the future as 2012 legacy action plan is launched
New inspections raise the bar on dementia care
Giving Disabled People Equal Access to Work
Speech by James Parnell
Equality Assessment of the Continuous Measurement of Incapacity Benefit
Families with disabled children face housing crisis
Many disabled children are stuck in the worst housing in Britain, say campaigners calling for more government help
Alcohol can cut risk of arthritis, claims study
Two studies, involving more than 2,750 people, find that drinking has a protective effect
New NHS polyclinics will damage patient care, warns thinktank
Supersurgeries may be more expensive, less efficient and less accessible, says report
Government pledges £900,000 towards independent living and launches support programme for councils
Criminal Records Bureau Checks: Guidance for volunteering
Carers: We should care more about carers
Councils urged to hand over care cash to charities
Councils should be forced to spend a set amount of their funding on buying services from charities and social enterprises, says the care services minister, Ivan Lewis
Thousands 'are forced to choose between food and home care'
Vulnerable people are going without food and heating to pay for homecare services, says report
Heart patients 'dying due to poor care'
One in five patients undergoing heart bypass operations are not receiving the best care, says report
Cameron - pay charities market rate
Charities should be allowed to earn 'substantial' fees from delivering public services
Harman: Decluttering equality law
New inspections raise the bar on dementia care
Booklet on Rights for People with Learning Difficulties
Government backs Volunteers' Week
Implementing the National Stroke Strategy: An imaging guide
Disability: Celebrating 180 years of deafness
The Smith family have inherited deafness for eight generations.
Ageism is intolerable, like any prejudice
Discrimination against old people is rife
Jobcentres and employers urged to value volunteering with a day off
Department for Work and Pensions asked to recognise volunteering as a job-seeking activity
Equality: Is it time to extend the age laws?
Within the next few weeks the government is expected to announce details of a new equality bill to simplify the existing laws.
DWP: Equality schemes 2008-2011
Learning disability: We need to know more.
We have put man on the moon, but we do not know how many of our neighbours are learning disabled
People with obesity-related diabetes risk serious health problems because they do not take their medicines
Letter to Local Authorities Regarding an Update to the Disabled Facilities Grant Programme
Promoting Benefit Take Up Amongst Older People
DIUS Single Equality Scheme: Consultation
Strategic health authorities unveil visions for improved healthcare Top of page
Elderly promised new deal from NHS
Johnson calls for more preventive care so older people can live at home and stay out of hospital
Long-term care: Admiral approach helps plot a better course for carers
Carers' hours are long, their prospects bleak, and there isn't much help on offer
Government launches national dignity tour
The Equality and Human Rights Commission responds to Brown's draft legislation
Equality and Human Rights Commission Equality Scheme 2008-09
The Business Case for Equal Opportunities: An econometric investigation
Valuable online blue badge map service improved
Moving forward with health reform
Healthcare Commission publishes results of survey of staff at every NHS trust in England
Britons live longer - but are not happier
Report from Office for National Statistics says standard of living has increased over last 30 years, but few of us are satisfied
Friends of the Earth and Help the Aged sue the government for failing to eradicate fuel poverty
NHS GPs at new Virgin health centres will get 10% of profits
Virgin polyclinic to open in Swindon this summer, in an experiment that could change the face of the NHS
Healthcare watchdog calls on NHS to learn from patients' complaints
Pathways to Work: Qualitative study of in-work support
Have your say
Access to air travel for disabled persons and persons with reduced mobility - Code of practice 2008
Firm accused of GBP37,000 disability grants swindle
Wider role planned for high-street chemists
Local Transport Bill: Written ministerial statement
Local Transport Bill: Draft regulations and guidance
Millions to benefit from improved access to treatment, check-ups and health advice from pharmacists
Consultation: The CSCI review of eligibility criteria
Families make futures conference
£24 million boost for health and social care
Equality and Human Rights Commission launches first equality scheme
Equality and Human Rights Commission awards £10 million funding to organisations across Britain
Equally Different: Fairness is everyone's right
Equalities body launches YouTube channel
Employment and Support Allowance Equality Impact Assessment
Some information from this page for previous months is now on the Archive page, or on the relevant section of the information page.