The first Annual Report of the Youth Offending Team Inspection Programme in England and Wales.

Schools minister Stephen Twigg has promised a crackdown on a hardcore of ?serial truants? after official figures showed a rise in unauthorised absence from school.

17,000 more students regularly attended school last year than in 2002/3 and there has been an increase of 40,000 since Labour took power, said Mr Twigg. This was largely due to a reduction in authorized absences, such as dental or medical appointments during school hours.

However, unauthorised absences ? truancy, severe lateness or non-agreed holidays - showed an increase of 380,000 pupil days last year. This is despite a raft of measures including more parental prosecutions, spot fines, and truancy sweeps.

The first ever national blueprint to ensure personalised child-centred health and social care services was launched today by Health Secretary John Reid and Education Secretary Charles Clarke.

The Government has announced a substantial funding package over the next three years of over ?5 billion to support independent living for vulnerable people.

The funding settlement, part of the Spending Review 2004, will provide ?1.72 billion in 2005/06, followed by around ?1.7 billion in both 2006/07 and 2007/08 for the Supporting People programme.

The Government's pledge to halve the time from arrest to sentence for persistent young offenders continues to improve, as figures released today show that for the second consecutive quarter, 38 out of the 42 Criminal Justice areas met or exceeeded the target of 71 days.

Satellite tracking will keep close tabs on offenders in three areas of the country in a groundbreaking development launched today by David Blunkett, the Home Secretary.

The tracking technology uses a satellite Global Positioning System, backed up by mobile phone technology in some cases, to monitor offenders? movements and ensure they are complying with the restrictions placed on them.

The new technology will provide an added layer of public protection, by helping deter offenders from breaking the law, while providing extra intelligence to public protection agencies about an ex-offender?s movements to ensure they can intervene swiftly if restrictions are being flouted.

This is a consultation exercise on developing police powers.

Police powers is a generic term that relates to the powers available to the police and other investigative agencies to tack

...are being considered by the Liberal Democrats.

A conference motion calls for "all under-14s who commit crime" to be dealt with by education and social services.

It also calls for the age of criminal responsibility to be raised from 10 to 12 years old.

Problem: one unruly child. Solution: put the whole family out on the street. Peter Stanford visits Mansfield's 'Little Bronx' estate where Anti-Social Behaviour Orders are running 'trouble' families out of town - and leading to a torrent of vigilantes, vendettas and writs.

Guidance from the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister on how local housing authorities and housing action trusts in England should prepare and review their policies and procedures in relation to anti-social behaviour.