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Aine Fox

Áine Fox is Social Affairs Correspondent at PA Media, covering a range of topics including homelessness, social housing, social care, charity, disadvantage and social mobility. Áine started at PA in 2014 working as overnight reporter then a general reporter. Previously she worked in local and regional media in Northern Ireland.

The Renters (Reform) Bill will return to Parliament next week (Yui Mok/PA)
Money

Return of renters Bill to Parliament ‘little cause for celebration’

<p>Health secretary Victoria Atkins said she would work to close loopholes for private online providers (Jeff Moore/PA)</p>
Health

NHS gender care taken over by ‘ideology’, health secretary claims

The Government has been accused of caving to pressure to water down long-promised rental reforms (Victoria Jones/PA)
UK Politics

Renters Reform Bill fast becoming landlords’ charter, say campaigners

<p>Ten-month-old Finley Boden was murdered just weeks after he was returned to his parents’ care in 2020 (Derbyshire Police/PA)</p>
Crime

Baby died as result of abuse from parents despite being ‘protected’

<p>The study found that younger people with mental health problems can have their chances of a good education blighted and can end up out of work or going into low-paid jobs</p>
Health

Poor mental health cost society £300 billion in one year

Waspi chairwoman Angela Madden called for swift compensation for women affected by state pension changes (Victoria Jones/PA)
Money

Rishi Sunak urged to act after women’s lives ‘ruined’ by pensions age change

The Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman published its report into the matter on Thursday (Peter Byrne/PA)
Money

Campaigners urge swift pensions compensation as women ‘cannot wait any longer’

Dr Jihong Zhu testing out a robot dresser (University of York/PA)
Health

Two arms are better than one for robot dressers, says researcher

<p>Dame Esther Rantzen said she wanted ‘to say goodbye fairly gracefully’ to her friends and family</p>
Health

Dame Esther Rantzen makes fresh call for assisted dying vote

The Government has been accused of outsourcing its rental reforms Bill to landlord backbenchers (Victoria Jones/PA)
Business

Government outsourcing rental reforms Bill to landlord MPs, campaigners claim

A 7% pay rise has been recommended for Church of England clergy (Alamy/PA)
Business

Pay rise of 7% recommended for Church of England clergy after union demand

<p>The Met referred itself to the regulator in September</p>
Home News

Black teenager stopped and searched by police six times in five months

<p>Data on marriage and civil partnership status in England and Wales has been released by the Office for National Statistics (Niall Carson/PA)</p>
Home News

Number of people married or in civil partnerships falls below 50%

Home News

Number of people married or in civil partnerships falls below 50%

<p>Data on marriage and civil partnership status in England and Wales has been released by the Office for National Statistics (Niall Carson/PA)</p>
Tens of thousands of refugees could be on the streets this Christmas, councils have warned (Yui Mok/PA)
UK

Perfect storm could see many refugees sleeping rough this Christmas, says LGA

Twana Mohammad died in a November 2021 Channel crossing (Zana Mamand Mohammad/PA)
UK

‘My brother’s dreams of being a footballer ended in the English Channel’

Campaigners said Afghans have been ‘failed’ by Government resettlement schemes (Dominic Lipinski/PA)
UK

Afghan asylum claims ’10 times number of those arriving in resettlement schemes’

A rise in migrants coming to the UK for work was largely attributed to those coming on health and care visas, the ONS said (Alamy/PA)
UK

It’s unsustainable to prop up social care with workers on visas, say NHS Trusts

A rise in migrants coming to the UK for work was largely attributed to those coming on health and care visas, the ONS said (Alamy/PA)
UK

It’s unsustainable to prop up social care with workers on visas, say NHS Trusts

The ONS has released the latest statistics on net migration to the UK (Alamy/PA)
UK

What is the UK’s current net migration and what does it mean?

Charities have criticised the Government’s toughened approach to welfare reform which will see people lose benefits if they do not look for work (PA)
UK

Welfare reforms are a cynical attack on disability benefits, charities say

Housing allowance and benefits rises in line with inflation have been welcomed by charities and campaigners (Alamy/PA)
Money

‘Huge sigh of relief’ for renters after housing allowance unfrozen

The Government has announced that it will raise benefits in line with September’s inflation figures, allaying fears they would be uprated by the lower October figure (Dominic Lipinski/PA)
Money

Hunt raises benefits in line with inflation ‘to support families in difficulty’

One in four parents surveyed said they planned to ask for food and borrow money from friends and family (Dominic Lipinski/PA)
UK

One in 10 younger parents will use baby bank for essentials this winter – survey

Four times as many girls as boys have a probable eating disorder, a survey has shown (PA)
UK

Eating disorder rates four times higher in girls than boys, survey shows

UK

Charity predicts 24,400 young homeless people in England this winter

Immigration minister Robert Jenrick said the potential extension of the visa period for Ukrainians in the UK is being kept under ‘consistent review’ (James Manning/PA)
UK

Visa uncertainty adding to ‘insecurity’ for Ukrainian refugees, campaigner warns

Four times as many girls as boys have a probable eating disorder, a survey has shown (PA)
UK

Eating disorder rates four times higher in girls than boys, survey shows

UK

Charity predicts 24,400 young homeless people in England this winter

Immigration minister Robert Jenrick said the potential extension of the visa period for Ukrainians in the UK is being kept under ‘consistent review’ (James Manning/PA)
UK

Visa uncertainty adding to ‘insecurity’ for Ukrainian refugees, campaigner warns

There has been a large increase in unaccompanied asylum-seeking children in England in the year to March 2023 (Alamy/PA)
UK

Number of lone child asylum seekers in England rises by almost a third in a year

UK

Number of lone child asylum seekers in England rises by almost a third in a year

There has been a large increase in unaccompanied asylum-seeking children in England in the year to March 2023 (Alamy/PA)
Almost a quarter of a million people are waiting to have their social care needs assessed, according to a report (Alamy/PA)
UK

Nearly 250,000 people awaiting adult social care needs assessment – report

The Samaritans chief executive joined campaigners in urging the Government to provide ‘small change’ to make a ‘big change’ in suicide prevention (Belinda Jiao/PA)
UK

Only small change needed to make big change in suicide prevention – Samaritans

The backlog of older cases in the UK asylum system fell by nearly half between July and October, new figures show (Alamy/PA)
UK

Asylum backlog of older cases down by nearly half since July

It would be ‘indefensible’ if benefits were raised by October’s lower inflation figure instead of September’s, campaigners helping struggling families have said (Anthony Devlin/PA)
Business

Indefensible if Government ‘fiddles figures’ to uprate benefits – campaigners

It would be ‘indefensible’ if benefits were raised by October’s lower inflation figure instead of September’s, campaigners helping struggling families have said (Anthony Devlin/PA)
Business

Indefensible if Government ‘fiddles figures’ to uprate benefits – campaigners

The Church of England has taken its next step to addressing victims of abuse through apologies and compensation (Dominic Lipinski/PA)
UK

Church of England takes next step towards redress for abuse victims

The Grenfell Tower Memorial Commission has set out recommendations for a lasting memorial to the victims and survivors of the 2017 blaze (Dominic Lipinski/PA)
UK

Construction on lasting Grenfell memorial could begin in 2026

Campaigners have called for an ‘urgent government plan to lift families out of poverty’ (Alamy/PA)
UK

One in 10 parents and carers running out of money before end of month – survey

The sacking of the 15th housing minister since 201 has been described as an insult to renters (Alamy/PA)
UK

Revolving door of housing ministers an insult to renters, say campaign groups

Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby said the ‘bloodshed must cease’ as he spoke to the Church of England’s General Synod about the Middle East conflict (Doug Peters/PA)
UK

Israel-Palestine conflict ‘prising people apart’ in UK, says Justin Welby

Rachel Maclean was the 15th housing minister in 13 years (UK Parliament/PA)
UK

Fifteenth housing minister since 2010 ousted in latest reshuffle

There has been a decline in the quality of resettlement services in recent years across England and Wales, a new report has said (Alamy/PA)
UK

‘Disappointing’ more not done to understand inequality for prison leavers – MPs

The number of people attending Church of England services has risen compared with last year (Kirsty O’Connor/PA)
UK

Church attendance figures rise but still below pre-pandemic levels

The Government said it will not be taking forward proposed changes to the law on surrogacy (Andrew Matthews/PA)
UK

Proposed changes to surrogacy law ‘will not be taken forward at the moment’

No-fault eviction court proceedings are at a seven-year high in England (Alamy/PA)
UK

‘Action needed’ as no-fault eviction court proceedings hit seven-year high

The UK is third for donating money to charity but ranks 17th in an overall global index (Alamy/PA)
Home News

UK in top three for donating money but lags in overall generosity

Home News

UK in top three for donating money but lags in overall generosity

The UK is third for donating money to charity but ranks 17th in an overall global index (Alamy/PA)
A report has called for an end to long-term segregation of children with learning disabilities in hospital (Alamy/PA)
UK

End solitary confinement for children and limit it for adults, review demands

The Renters Reform Bill will return for the next parliamentary session (Yui Mok/PA)
UK

Government accused of ‘kicking can down road’ on plans to ban no-fault evictions

The Office for National Statistics said some respondents whose first language is not English or Welsh may not have understood the gender question in the 2021 census as intended (Alamy/PA)
UK

‘Language barrier may have caused confusion on census gender identity question’

Food banks distributed a record number of emergency food parcels between April and September this year (Jonathan Brady/PA)
UK

Food banks see tens of thousands of first-time users as parcels hit record high

Food banks distributed a record number of emergency food parcels between April and September this year (Jonathan Brady/PA)
UK

Food banks see tens of thousands of first-time users as parcels hit record high

The Trussell Trust said food banks have given out a record 1.5 million emergency parcels in a six-month period (Andy Buchanan/PA)
UK

King’s Speech ‘did not offer any hope for people facing extreme hardship’

Alongside the Bill, the Government said it is working to speed up the court process around repossession of properties (PA)
UK

Renters will remain in fear of losing their homes, charity says

The Government has said a memorial to the Holocaust will be built in Victoria Tower Gardens (UK Holocaust Memorial/PA)
UK

Holocaust Memorial Bill returns as Government vows to tackle antisemitism

Campaigners have expressed disappointment at a Conversion Therapy Bill – to ban the practice – not being mentioned in the King’s Speech (Alamy/PA)
UK

Government accused of ‘frightful negligence’ over lack of conversion therapy ban

The Isle of Man’s Parliament is considering the Assisted Dying Bill (Alamy/PA)
UK

Isle of Man’s Assisted Dying Bill to undergo committee scrutiny

Tents are a lifeline rather than a lifestyle choice for people who sleep on the streets, a former homeless man has said (Yui Mok/PA)
UK

A tent is a lifeline not a lifestyle choice for rough sleepers – ex-homeless man

Researchers sampled 400 videos from four different challenge hashtags on the platform (Alamy/PA)
Tech

Sexist comments on TikTok ‘more liked’ than non-sexist ones – study

The term woke is increasingly seen as an insult by some, according to research (Alamy/PA)
UK

Public feel politicians invent or exaggerate culture wars as tactic – poll

The anti-terror Prevent programme should be scrapped, Amnesty International said (Alamy/PA)
UK

Prevent anti-terror programme incompatible with human rights, says Amnesty

A vow to ban conversion practices was first made by Theresa May’s government in July 2018 (Mike Egerton/PA)
UK

Celebrities accuse PM of ‘callous disregard’ over conversion therapy ban delay

It is 70 years since Samaritans took its first call to the helpline (Alamy/PA)
UK

Samaritans ‘needed more than ever’ as charity marks 70 years since first call

UK

Samaritans ‘needed more than ever’ as charity marks 70 years since first call

It is 70 years since Samaritans took its first call to the helpline (Alamy/PA)
Shelter has launched its Christmas advert to draw attention to children living in temporary accommodation (Shelter/PA)
UK

Shelter’s Christmas ad warns of plight of children in temporary accommodation

The Isle of Man is on the path to being the first part of the British Isles to legalise assisted dying, campaigners said (Alamy/PA)
UK

‘Isle of Man on path to be first in British Isles to legalise assisted dying’

Members of the House of Keys on the Isle of Man took part in a vote on the Assisted Dying Bill (Alamy/PA)
UK

Isle of Man’s parliament votes Assisted Dying Bill through to next stage

England football star Marcus Rashford led a campaign for free school meal vouchers in the pandemic (Fareshare/Mark Waugh/PA)
UK

Government made ‘huge blunder’ on Rashford meals campaign, inquiry hears

England football star Marcus Rashford led a campaign for free school meal vouchers in the pandemic (Fareshare/Mark Waugh/PA)
UK

Government made ‘huge blunder’ on Rashford meals campaign, inquiry hears

Dominic Cummings makes a statement in the Downing Street rose garden (Jonathan Brady/PA)
UK

Patrick Vallance said Cummings’ Durham trip ‘clearly against lockdown rules’

The Isle of Man parliament will vote on an Assisted Dying Bill on Tuesday (Alamy/PA)
UK

Doctor ‘cautiously optimistic’ Assisted Dying Bill will pass vote on Isle of Man

A review into RSHE was announced in March (Jonathan Brady/PA)
UK

Unions accuse Keegan of ‘inflaming controversy’ over sex education teaching

The equalities watchdog has written to the Government to express concerns over changes to benefits assessments which it said could affect disabled people (David Jones/PA)
UK

Equalities watchdog expresses concerns for disabled over benefits reforms

Childcare is an ongoing challenge for many working families (Alamy/PA)
Health & Families

Nursery places and wraparound childcare plans announced

The Government has published more details of its planned childcare investment (Dominic Lipinski/PA)
UK

Nursery places and wraparound childcare plans announced

The Home Office faces a ‘huge challenge’ to clear the asylum backlog by the end of the year, a committee has said (Alamy/PA)
UK

Effort to clear asylum backlog could shift pressure to elsewhere in system – MPs

Dominic Cummings and Lee Cain are both set to appear before the Covid inquiry next week (Adrian Dennis/PA)
UK

Cummings and other senior No 10 officials due at Covid inquiry next week

Whitbread is among high-profile names supporting the campaign (Dominic Lipinski/PA)
Health & Families

Fatima Whitbread supporting new fostering campaign, as research finds ‘misconceptions put people off’

A fostering network said misconceptions are holding potential carers back from coming forward (Alamy/PA)
UK

Consider fostering, urge Sissay and Whitbread as ‘misconceptions put people off’

Rents for student accommodation have increased by an average of 14.6% over the past two academic years, according to a new report (Alamy/PA)
UK

New report brands student maintenance system ‘broken’ amid soaring rents

The Local Government Association, which represents councils, has warned of the homelessness risk as migrants are moved out of hotels (Alamy/PA)
UK

Homeless migrants could end up in hotels again, LGA warns

Campaigners are urging domestic abuse survivors and stalking victims to delete their NHS app until safeguards are in place to protect them from potential risks due to a change in accessing medical records (Kirsty O’Connor/PA)
Health

Women’s campaigners warn of safety risks from NHS app medical records access

Education Secretary Gillian Keegan said long-promised transgender guidance for schools is in the process of being refined and will come soon (Danny Lawson/PA)
UK

Schools transgender guidance being refined and will come ‘soon’, says Keegan

Around 3.8 million people, including around a million children, experienced destitution in 2022, according to a new report (Alamy/PA)
UK

1m children in most extreme poverty as figure almost trebles since 2017 – report

Children refusing to go to school is a big issue for many parents and carers, a charity has warned (Danny Lawson/PA)
UK

Children refusing to go to school a big issue for parents, says charity

Education Secretary Gillian Keegan said long-promised transgender guidance for schools is in the process of being refined and will come soon (Danny Lawson/PA)
UK

Schools transgender guidance being refined and will come ‘soon’, says Keegan

Around 3.8 million people, including around a million children, experienced destitution in 2022, according to a new report (Alamy/PA)
UK

1m children in most extreme poverty as figure almost trebles since 2017 – report

Children refusing to go to school is a big issue for many parents and carers, a charity has warned (Danny Lawson/PA)
UK

Children refusing to go to school a big issue for parents, says charity

The Education Secretary has said copyright should not prevent sex education material from being shared with parents (Ben Birchall/PA)
UK

Parents have right to know what sex education their child is taught – Keegan

In the past two years a helpline has seen a significant rise in the number of cases indicating labourabuse and forced labour in the care sector, a charity said (Alamy/UK)
UK

Helpline sees rise in suspected modern slavery cases among care workers

BBC director-general Tim Davie met with the Board of Deputies of British Jews (Jacob King/PA)
UK

BBC boss told of Jewish community’s outrage over Hamas language

Farah Naz, aunt of murdered law graduate Zara Aleena, said her killer’s appeal bid has caused the family profound distress (Yui Mok/PA)
Crime

Zara Aleena’s killer’s sentence reduction bid ‘has reignited family’s agony’

A helpline set up after the Hamas attacks in Israel has received more than 150 calls, a Jewish students’ union said (Chris Radburn/PA)
UK

More than 150 calls to Jewish students helpline since Hamas attacks, says union

The Bishop of London Sarah Mullally said standalone services for same-sex blessings were not likely to happen before 2025 (Jonathan Brady/PA)
UK

Church of England services for same-sex couples blessings unlikely before 2025

Some people have had to reduce their care visits to a minimum, which has impacted their quality of life, the Care Quality Commission said (Alamy/PA)
UK

‘Cutbacks in home care amid rising costs leaving family carers overwhelmed’

The Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse (IICSA) has published its findings and recommendations in an overarching final report (Alamy/PA)
UK

NSPCC blasts Government’s ‘piecemeal’ response a year on from major abuse report

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