The number of children involved in care proceedings before they reach their first birthdays is at a persistently high level across England, according to experts who have published new figures.

Data from the universities of Lancaster and Oxford indicates care proceedings for babies have risen by 64% over the past two decades, with one in 118 infants affected. The figures – up to 2024-25 – peaked during Covid, before dropping slightly and plateauing.

While there are cases where it is unsafe for parents to continue contact with their children, experts have told File on 4 Investigates that many babies may not have needed to go into care if support had been in place.

And, since very young children who go into care are more likely to be adopted than older children, there are also concerns from experts that some may have been permanently separated from their birth families unnecessarily.

The BBC understands that new guidance for Family Court judges, to significantly reduce the number of short-notice care hearings – within hours or days of a baby being born – will be announced before the end of the year.

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Major bridges in Kyiv have been hit by Russian drone strikes for four consecutive days, as Moscow ramps up attacks on critical infrastructure in Ukraine’s capital.

Two people were injured when the Pivnichnyi (Northern) Bridge was struck on Sunday morning for the second day in a row, while the Pivdennyi (Southern) Bridge was hit multiple times earlier in the week.

The latest attack came as German Chancellor Friedrich Merz made a surprise visit to Kyiv in a show of support against Russia’s continuing full-scale invasion.

Russia’s military said it would be intensifying strikes on Kyiv and other Ukrainian regions. It earlier said it had hit the two bridges used to transfer Ukrainian troops.

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#Ukraine #Russia #Kyiv #FriedrichMerz #BBCNews

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Israel has been remembering the deadliest single day in its history on 7th October 2023 when Hamas and other Palestinian armed groups stormed communities and a music festival, killing around 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages. Across the border, Gazans are counting the cost of Israel’s war on Hamas, as they struggle with dire living conditions and continued military attacks.

Also in the Global News Podcast:

08:58 The US and EU calls for transparency from Russia, after lab technician dies at a plague research centre in Siberia.

11:13 The Nobel Prize in Chemistry has been awarded to French scientist Henri B. Kagan and Japan’s Kenso Soai for providing a solution to the chemical mystery of life’s asymmetry.

13:48 Russia launches deadly strikes on Ukraine, in what Volodymyr Zelensky has described as one of Russia’s “most vile” attacks.

16:14 Why Malaysia is repatriating thousands of Myanmar refugees, and rolling out the red carpet for Myanmar’s military leader

19:54 Do users trust and reward “male” AI agents more than female ones?

New episodes of the Global News Podcast are published twice a day. You can listen here: https://link.mgln.ai/GNP-YT

And you can find more of our YouTube episodes here: https://bbc.in/GlobalNewsPodcast

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Convicted murderer Christa Pike has woken up and begun speaking from her hospital bed almost a week after authorities in the US state of Tennessee botched her execution, her lawyers said.

She was sent to hospital after surviving two attempts to execute her via lethal injection for the 1995 murder of a 19-year-old she met at a summer camp for troubled teens.

Now her lawyers are asking for answers and for evidence to be preserved. So what happens now?

In this video…
0:00 – What condition is she in?
1:52 – How did she survive?
3:47 – What did she do?
4:33 – The victims family
4:55 – What are the lawyers saying?
6:25 – Can Christa Pike sue?
7:10 – Will they try execute her again?
9:17 – What happens now?

#ChristaPike #US #BBCNews

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What began as a revolt over public school funding has spilled into a much bigger fight over the future of France. Now, hundreds of …

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