Scottish councils’ allocations in the draft budget put at risk the delivery of essential services next year, according to local government body Cosla.Total funding for both the revenue and capital budget in the settlement is up more than £210 million, with overall Scottish Government support to local authorities at £11.1…

Councils may pull out of a scheme for housing asylum seekers after carrying a "disproportionate share" of the costs and pressures, a Commons report has warned.MPs claimed local authorities have "lost confidence" in the system, with some weighing up whether to cease participating.If their support was lost, the Government would…

A couple who complained about their child being taken from them and handed to adopters even though a cruelty prosecution had been abandoned were not the victims of a miscarriage of justice, a leading judge has concluded after a review.Karrissa Cox and former soldier Richard Carter, who are in their…

A family of landlords has been ordered to pay almost £250,000 after "cramming" 31 tenants into a four-bedroom house, a council said.The tenants were forced to sleep in shifts as night workers would swap with those who had daytime working hours at the property in Napier Road, Wembley, council officers…

More than 4.3 million elderly people are at risk of being without care because of where they live, new research has suggested.Just one in five local areas in the UK report having enough care for people aged 75 and over to meet demand, with a third (34%) of local authorities…

A £10,000 donation has been given to Westminster City Council as part of a new scheme to combat loneliness, help rough sleepers and provide training for young people.The donation was given to the Westminster Community Contribution Fund, a scheme allowing high earners within the Band H tax bracket to pay…

The UK Government will not allow Holyrood ministers to pay £65 settled status fees for European citizens who are working in Scotland’s public services, Nicola Sturgeon has said.The First Minister has already promised her government would pick up the cost for NHS staff and other public-sector workers who have come…

Council social services bosses have apologised after a High Court judge criticised their handling of two cases involving children.Mr Justice Keehan complained of "incompetence and serial failings" by staff at Herefordshire Council in the handling of a case involving twins.Lawyers representing each twin had alleged breaches of the human right…

A social worker appointed to represent the interests of two children at the centre of complex family court litigation has come under fire from a senior judge.Kailash Chudasama had acted as the children's "guardian" and been appointed by the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service (Cafcass) - whose…

Young people's futures are being put at risk because of cuts in youth services, including hundreds of job losses, a new report warns.Unison said almost 900 youth worker jobs have been axed since 2016 and more than £13 million has been sliced from youth services across the UK.At least 160…

A campaigner has raised concerns after open justice rules were broken when council social services bosses tried to have a man jailed for contempt of court.Former Liberal Democrat MP John Hemming (pictured) says the case, which was heard in the Family Division of the High Court in London on Wednesday,…

Council bosses are to pay for a deep clean of a couple's home after concerns were raised about the conditions a toddler was living in.The child lives with relatives, and social workers had considered asking a family court judge to place the youngster for adoption.But social services bosses have drawn…