Tag: family

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English babies and young children failed amid surging poverty and inadequate protection legislation compared with Scotland

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Featured in BBC Breakfast this morning and in Glasgow Live, today the above, with a tasteless image, and: A charity has claimed that babies and young children in the Scottish care system are being failed by delays in decisions on their permanent homes. NSPCC Scotland and the Parent Infant Foundation have organised the National Summit on Permanence for Babies and Young Children amid ‘serious concerns’ about the length of time youngsters wait to be placed in a long-term home. The charity says that kids wait more than two years on average for decisions or recommendations, with many then waiting months … Continue reading English babies and young children failed amid surging poverty and inadequate protection legislation compared with Scotland

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Eradicating child poverty costs nothing in the long term because everything depends on it – the EIGHT research reports supporting the SNP Government’s decision to spend 0.7% of its budget for a future we all benefit from

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In the Guardian in December 2024: The news that more than one in three children in the UK are now living in poverty should shock everyone but surprise no one. Nearly three years into the cost of living crisis, we know that young families and disabled people have been among those hit hardest by the biggest fall in UK living standards in half a century. The latest estimates, by the non-partisan Social Metrics Commission, show that the number of people in poverty has risen to 16 million, or nearly one in four of the UK population – its highest level … Continue reading Eradicating child poverty costs nothing in the long term because everything depends on it – the EIGHT research reports supporting the SNP Government’s decision to spend 0.7% of its budget for a future we all benefit from

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English Media say maternity care there is in a doom loop (no ”) but no matter how ‘our’ media try Scotland is not having England’s maternity crisis – It’s just a review

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In the Guardian today, the above with notably no speech marks around ‘doom loop’, and: The NHS Alliance has announced that up to 20 of the country’s 155 smaller, consultant-led maternity units, mostly in rural or coastal areas, might have to close, since their safety is in question. The problem – which will seem very pressing and obvious to anyone about to give birth, yet quite abstract and manageable to anyone who isn’t – is that those areas aren’t teeming with alternatives. There are women in Devon whose maternity hospital has been temporarily closed, whose next nearest hospital is 53 … Continue reading English Media say maternity care there is in a doom loop (no ”) but no matter how ‘our’ media try Scotland is not having England’s maternity crisis – It’s just a review

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Headlining a single but common rural care home placing to platform local Tory MSP and the untrustworthy Lisa Summers

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With only 1 day left, support Talking-up Scotland’s work to counter the lies and get you the facts, daily, at:Crowdfunder at: https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/p/help-talking-up-scotland-keep-goingOr by direct bank transfer to: JOHN WATSON ROBERTSON Sort Code – 08-91-04 Account – 12266421 BBC Scotland today, milking another single medical case in an effort to undermine the reputation of the SNP in government: The family of a man stuck in hospital for 16 months have been told he could be placed in a care home 100 miles away. John Russell, from Oban, was admitted to the town’s Lorn & Islands Hospital last year after he suffered a stroke. His wife Teresa, 79, said she was … Continue reading Headlining a single but common rural care home placing to platform local Tory MSP and the untrustworthy Lisa Summers

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Legal aid for abused women – available in all UK nations but most generous in Scotland and strictest means-testing in England

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Help Talking-up Scotland keep goin Crowdfunder at: https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/p/help-talking-up-scotland-keep-going Or by direct bank transfer to: JOHN WATSON ROBERTSON Sort Code – 08-91-04 Account – 12266421 The above comment pops up regularly and I’ve never thought to check. I have now: Do abused women get legal aid in England but not in Scotland? No. Abused women (and other victims of domestic abuse) can get legal aid in both England/Wales and Scotland, but the rules, evidence requirements, financial tests, and practical access differ because the two jurisdictions have separate legal aid systems. https://www.gov.uk/legal-aid/print England – You normally need specified evidence (police reports, court orders, letters from support services, health professionals, etc.), … Continue reading Legal aid for abused women – available in all UK nations but most generous in Scotland and strictest means-testing in England

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TWICE as common in England and FOUR times as many children there face domestic abuse compared to Scotland yet only BBC Scotland seem concerned 

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BBC Radio Scotland above and BBC Scotland‘s website today on child experiences of rape and of increased rape reporting: Scotland’s top law officer has said it is “concerning for all of us” that the number of domestic abuse charges has increased. New figures show that 34,586 charges were reported to the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) last year – an increase of 14% on the previous year. Court action was ordered in 91% of cases. Sources: https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/live/bbc_radio_scotland_fm https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cdx5lxdwyqzo Help Talking-up Scotland keep going Crowdfunder at: https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/p/help-talking-up-scotland-keep-going Or by direct bank transfer to: JOHN WATSON ROBERTSON Sort Code – 08-91-04 Account – 12266421 Nowhere, this: Domestic abuse … Continue reading TWICE as common in England and FOUR times as many children there face domestic abuse compared to Scotland yet only BBC Scotland seem concerned 

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‘Scottish’ Daily Express today desperately tries to link it to Scotland but nothing in Scotland looks anything like the mass child grooming rape gangs in England

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The Daily Express ‘Scottish’ today, above with an English/Pakistani rape gang leader and one of his victims in England on the front page. Below in the UK, where is the story? Why is this unacceptable propaganda? From the First Minister 9 February 2026, responding to calls for a national review: However, in order for any action to be effective, we must appropriately consider the relevance of these recommendations for our specific legislative, statutory service and regulatory landscape, and the scale of this specific form of organised gang-related sexual abuse of children and young people in Scotland. I would firstly like … Continue reading ‘Scottish’ Daily Express today desperately tries to link it to Scotland but nothing in Scotland looks anything like the mass child grooming rape gangs in England

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The real news – The SNP era sees massive increases in attainment by looked after children with three times as many passing at National 5 and eight times as many at Higher

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In the Herald today, under a frankly creepy image: Scottish Labour has accused the SNP of “breaking The Promise” after new figures showed the attainment gap between looked-after children and their peers has widened in recent years. Looked-after children are young people in the care of their local authority, including those in foster care, residential care, kinship care or some children living at home under formal supervision. How many times have I pointed out that not one credible, peer-review published educational researcher, across the globe, cares about attainment gaps. They care about improvements within disadvantaged groups over time. They know that the middle … Continue reading The real news – The SNP era sees massive increases in attainment by looked after children with three times as many passing at National 5 and eight times as many at Higher

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Horrific, unregulated, and very profitable. The companies prevented from making cash from Scotland’s children in care because of Nicola Sturgeon’s ‘promise’ in 2016

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Before anyone accuses me of being duped, read my trenchant criticism of Nicola Sturgeon’s apparent views on Hilary Clinton and US foreign policy at: https://talkingupscotlandtwo.com/2026/03/04/sturgeon-and-clinton-does-being-a-woman-any-woman-trump-sic-her-war-crimes-her-murder-and-betrayal-of-the-poor/ That matters to me, a lot, but nothing can deny her massive achievements on the home front. In the Guardian today, from George Monbiot, quite an heroic figure for me and often well-tuned into to Scottish affairs: Bring your suitcase, your bin liner, your dumpy bag. They’re handing out money faster than you can stuff it in a sack. All you need do is join the market in what may now be England’s most lucrative … Continue reading Horrific, unregulated, and very profitable. The companies prevented from making cash from Scotland’s children in care because of Nicola Sturgeon’s ‘promise’ in 2016

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Contrary to England, vulnerable children in Scotland must be placed in regulated safe settings

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Thanks to Dottie for alerting me to this. In the Guardian today: Ministers must get to grips with the “national scandal” of England’s shadow child social care system, the children’s commissioner has warned, as a report reveals the number of children in unregulated settings has increased by more than 370% in five years. Some of the most vulnerable children in England are being temporarily placed in unregulated caravans, Airbnbs and holiday camps, which risk the “accumulation of increasing levels of harm for children who have already faced enough distress for several lifetimes”, according to the report. Analysis of Ofsted data has … Continue reading Contrary to England, vulnerable children in Scotland must be placed in regulated safe settings