Charity watchdog opens inquiry into running of care home for vulnerable adults

Charity watchdogs have launched a formal inquiry into the management of a learning disability care home that paid its chair £1m in fees and is just five weeks away from possible closure over a £1.6m unpaid tax bill.The Charity Commission rapidly upgraded the status of its investigation into allegations of financial mismanagement and poor governance at William Blake House just weeks after opening a lesser regulatory investigation into the charity.The opening of the inquiry comes amid Guardian revelations about the parlous state of William Blake House’s finances and an urgent bid to take over running of the home by families who fear their loved ones will be evicted.The charity, which relies on more than £3m a year of council and NHS funding, is one of a handful of specialist residential homes in England for adults with severe and complex learning disabilities

Half of Britons avoid calling GP when they are ill, survey finds

Almost half the public delay or avoid contacting their GP surgery when they are ill, mainly because they think they will struggle to get an appointment.Overall 48% of people across the UK did not bother to ask their family doctor for help – either initially or at all – when they got sick over the past year, a survey found.Just over a quarter (27%) opted to manage the ailment themselves or waited for it to go away, despite doctors fearing that shunning GP care could seriously damage the person’s health.The findings underline the deep public concern about the ability to get fast access to vital NHS services such as A&E, GP care, hospital treatment and an ambulance if they call 999.The large number of people not calling their GP practice emerged in a survey that pollsters Ipsos undertook for the Health Foundation thinktank

Obstructive sleep apnoea costs UK and US economies £137bn a year, research finds

Obstructive sleep apnoea costs the US and UK economies more than £137bn ($185bn) a year, according to research.People with the serious health condition repeatedly stop breathing temporarily while asleep; they tend to snore very loudly and can wake up gasping for breath.Sufferers will also often experience excessive daytime fatigue. The condition is thought to affect about 1 billion people globally – including 8 million in the UK – though up to 85% are undiagnosed. Untreated, it is linked to increased risks of heart attack and stroke

Young bearing the brunt of UK tax and wage changes, says BoE economist

The negative effect of a combined increase in employers’ taxes and minimum wages has been “particularly acute” for young people, the Bank of England’s chief economist has warned.Huw Pill said on Tuesday that the increase in national insurance contributions (NICs) from April last year and the government’s efforts to equalise the “national living wage” had caused a particular problem for young people trying to find jobs.Official figures released last week showed that unemployment among 16- to 24-year-olds is higher than the EU average for the first time, rising to 16.1% in the final three months of 2025. This is the highest level, including the pandemic, since 2014, when the jobs market was still recovering from the financial crisis

Flawed council shake-up plans will not deliver savings | Letters

Polly Toynbee is correct to point out the foolishness of a massive local government reorganisation, given other priorities (Is No 10 seeking its own destruction? Why else would it botch its council plans and hand a victory to Farage?, 18 February).What she does not mention is that this reorganisation will lead to a large increase in inequality. The district councils that are being abolished are rising from the ashes as town and parish councils and, unlike other councils, they can set their own precept and cannot be capped. The largest town councils have budgets of more than £5m and more than 124 parish councils have budgets of over £1m. These councils tend to be in the wealthier suburban and rural areas, and can protect their residents from austerity, unlike residents of large, disadvantaged urban areas

Underwear care advice is just pants | Brief letters

So, we are supposed to throw away underwear that is more than six months old and wash the rest at 60C (Do we really need to replace our underwear every six months?, 23 February). There is no consideration of the ecological cost of adding to the mountain of discarded clothing, the cost of producing more cheap underwear and the added cost of heating water to 60C. Also, there is no evidence shown that wearing such underwear is harmful. I don’t know how I made it to the age of 77.Kathleen HooperPenistone, South Yorkshire The Bafta ceremony made it clear that, to its shame, the BBC sees the slogan “Free Palestine” as far more offensive than the most disgusting racist term in the dictionary – and acted accordingly (BBC producers say they ‘didn’t hear’ N-word slur as ‘working in a truck’, following second Baftas apology, 23 February)