Poverty in households with children is rising in nearly all Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries. Governments should ensure that family support policies protect the most vulnerable, according to the OECD’s first-ever report on family well-being.
The Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights, Thomas Hammarberg, has released an Issue Paper on the human rights perspective of adoption of children, calling for member states to ensure a better protection of children in the adoption process. According to the Commissioner, the realities of adoption still vary widely among European countries, in spite of international agreements, giving raise to serious human rights concerns.
The Child Support Agency (CSA) ended the financial year with another quarter of stable performance.
Calls to the NSPCC Helpline reporting suspected child abuse and neglect have reached record levels, the charity has revealed.
Britain’s levels of births outside marriage are at the highest point for at least 200 years, according to a major new study of the history of the family from the independent think-tank, Centre for Social Justice (CSJ). Cohabitation levels have also soared from under 5% pre-1945 to 90% today.
A new Convention has been signed by the EU that sets up a worldwide system for recovering child support and other family maintenance payments.
A number of women's and parenting charities have expressed their concerns over proposed changes to the child maintenance system in a letter to Theresa May, the Minister for women and equalities, reports the Guardian. The letter calls for the government to reconsider these proposals, warning that they are likely to unfairly affect single mothers.
A recent survey has revealed that couples living in the countryside have happier and healthier marriages or relationships than those living in the city, and are less likely to have a divorce or other relationship breakdown, reports the Telegraph.
The Scotsman newspaper reports on a recent survey which has revealed that around 40% of men contemplating marriage are choosing to go on a foreign holiday to propose to their girlfriends.
MSPs have backed a new law to protect people being forced into marriage against their will. The Forced Marriage etc (Protection & Jurisdiction)(Scotland) Act 2011 will make it a criminal offence to breach new laws leading to a two year prison sentence, a fine of up to £10,000, or both.
The European Commission (EC) is proposing the introduction of new EU-wide rules to clarify the legal position relating to property rights for married couples or registered partnerships from different countries.
MSPs have voted unanimously to pass the Domestic Abuse (Scotland) Bill, which was introduced by Rhona Grant MSP on 27th May 2010. The Bill creates a specific type of interdict for domestic abuse situations and breach of such orders will be classed as a criminal, instead of a civil, offence.
One in 26 looked after children contact ChildLine about failings and weaknesses in the care system, a new ChildLine report has revealed.
The number of marriages in Scotland rose by almost a thousand during 2010 compared with the previous year, the Registrar General for Scotland has announced.
Thousands of newly-separated or divorced parents are to be offered free information and support on arranging child maintenance thanks to a new initiative.
Reported cases of domestic abuse increased over the Christmas and New Year period, according to new figures published by Scotland’s Violence Reduction Unit (VRU).
Researchers from Canada and the US have claimed that winning a Best Actress Oscar could actually be bad news, at least as far as the actress' personal life is concerned.
Children's Minister Adam Ingram has announced that former Children's Panel member Bernadette Monaghan has been appointed as the first National Convener of Children's Hearings Scotland.
The number of weddings carried out by the Humanist Society of Scotland increased by around 35% during 2010, with 1,706 ceremonies taking place between January and September of that year.
A Court of Session ruling in a divorce settlement case has created a level of controversy in legal circles.
