09/01/2018 London News

That's Newsnight with Evan.

Good evening from BBC London News.

First tonight, it's claimed that

a healthcare company which employed

a care worker who stabbed

a 90-year-old was told she had

a previous conviction for assault.

Pamela Batten's family says

theya are extremely angry

and are considering legal action.

One charity has told this programme

the home care sector is in crisis.

Yvonne Hall reports.

90-year-old Pamela Batten left

disabled and very frightened

by a so-called carer

who tried to kill her.

Her son Sammy has filmed

his mother for us.

This is what the so-called

carer did to Pamela.

She hit her over the head

with a hammer and stabbed her

in the neck for cash.

She's been jailed for 21 years

for attempted murder.

She had convictions for assault

and burglary and should never have

been given a job looking

after vulnerable people.

I'm really angry.

It may not look it from the outside,

but I'm very, very angry.

The company who employed the carer

has always insisted that

despite robust safety checks,

it was not told by the government's

criminal records checking system,

the DPS, that the carer had previous

convictions for

assault and burglary.

It says it would not have

employed her if it had been told.

But today, the DPS said it had

warned Avant about the applicant's

violent past and added,

this certificate listed Beavis

convictions, serious offences such

as ABH would not be filtered

and would be disclosed.

This was Pamela Batten's

reaction today.

I am surprised, because they always

said they didn't know

anything about it.

So I am surprised.

Her son Sammy is furious and is now

considering legal action.

I'm really upset.

All through this, I've been calmly

upset, but now I'm extremely angry

and I want something done.

And I want to see it done,

I don't just want to hear words.

I want to see positive actions and I

want something done about this.

A charity campaigning for more

protection for elderly people says

it's concerned that others also

be at risk.

The reality is that the care sector

has been in crisis for a long time.

People are making decisions

that are expedient, that

are there for the moment,

and they are starting to disregard

the protection of vulnerable people.

We have been trying all afternoon

to get some response from Avant

health care services to the DBS

statement saying the company

was warned about the applicant's

violent background, but so far,

nobody from turkey

has been available.

nobody from Avant

has been available.

As well as action to stop anyone

else going through what she has,

Pamela would also like an apology.

I'm disappointed.

I mean, I haven't heard anything

from them apologising or anything.

The new Justice Secretary,

David Gauke, has announced a review

of procedures following the ruling

of the Parole Board to release

the London taxi driver John Worboys.

The decision to free the serial

sex attacker nine years

after he was sent to prison has

prompted anger from victims.

Frankie McCamley joins me now.

Understandable concern.

Yes,

absolutely. Now one of the main

things that went wrong following

this parole board hearing was how

victims were told. What we know is

that these victims that were

involved in the trial were either

notified via letter, e-mail or phone

call. Those who received letters or

e-mails, some didn't get through for

one reason or another and they found

out through the media. We have also

heard from one of his victims today,

she didn't want to be identified,

but she spoke to the BBC and what

she's demanding is an answer and to

find out exactly why Worbooys was

released. She said the law must be

changed and is asking for this

transparency and she says, I quote,

until that happens, we can have zero

confidence that he won't re-offend.

Now with with a new Justice

Secretary has anything changed?

Well, in the Commons we did hear

from the new Justice Secretary and

he echoed the statement made by his

predecessor that he is ordering an

urgent review with a report by

Easter into the transparency of

these decision-making process and

exactly how the victims are told.

Although that will be welcomed, this

doesn't really get to the heart of

what most of these victims are

concerned about and that's his

release date. They were wrongly

informed by the police that he would

be released after serving around ten

years. But now they are facing the

prospect that he will be released.

Thank you.

Should parents of premature babies

be given more paternity leave?

Around one in every 13

is born prematurely.

Now one London borough is believed

to be the first employer

in the country to give extra time

off to people to care

while their premature

newborns are in hospital.

With more details

here's Tolu Adayoye.

Imagine spending the start

of your new baby's life in hospital,

worried about their health instead

of at home, enjoying watching

them grow and develop.

Granny had to wait more

than six weeks to hold you.

What?

That's what happened to Katrina.

Her son Samuel was born at 30 weeks.

She says she then had

to go back to work before

she or Samuel were ready.

We were in hospital for eight weeks

before bringing him home,

and then when we came home,

he was very tiny and it was

difficult to bond with a baby

that had been taken away

from you at birth and

you had to leave him

in the hospital for so long.

And within months, it was time to go

back to work and for me,

that was too soon, but I had no

option but to return to work.

In the UK, maternity

and paternity leave start the day

after a baby is born.

Katrina has been campaigning

for extra leave for parents

of premature babies,

and her charity has

its first real victory.

Waltham Forest Council is thought

to be the first to decide

to change its policy on leave,

even though there is

no legal requirement.

For every week before the due date,

the parent will be entitled

to full pay and leave

for maternity and paternity.

It's the right thing to do

for the right reasons to make

a difference to our staff,

to be a good employer

and to hopefully be a beacon

to others to follow suit.

For example, once a baby is home,

there are likely to be further

hospital appointments and follow-up.

Often, sadly, there are also often

medical conditions that follow

from a premature birth,

so keeping that understanding

going beyond the return to work

and looking forward is also

something employers

should be looking at.

The idea to extend leave has been

discussed by MPs, and there

are guidelines advising employers.

Waltham Forest Council is a start,

but Katrina says she will keep

fighting until more parents

of premature babies get the leave

she believes they need and deserve.

A trip to the circus these days

can be a spectacular

sight, with acrobats

and cutting-edge visual effects.

But the attraction has a long

history which started

here in the capital 250 years ago,

as Wendy Hurrell reports.

Horses in head addresses, clowning

cricket, the ringmaster, all under

the Big Top tent. Circus has been an

enduring family entertainment. But

the history goes much, much further

back than this mid-century archive.

It was on this day, 250 years ago,

that an ex-cavalry man roped off an

area here in Waterloo and performed

tricks on horseback. Later he filled

his shows with astonishing acts,

jugglers and tumblerers, it was the

world's first circus.

He even

married an expert horsewoman and she

did an act where she dipped her

hands in honey and bees were

attracted to her hand. She would go

around the ring with bees around her

hands. Extraordinary.

What must

Londoners have made of this

spectacle?

I think they thought it

was absolutely wonderful and it

attracted them to the South Bank of

the river which was the rather side

of the theatre for entertainment.

Back north of the river today's

circus isn't about equines, rather a

theatrical show of super human

strength and skill.

As demonstrated here. This is at the

Royal Albert Hall this week.

The

traditional circus still exists and

it's important to maintain that

history and culture. In 1984 we took

away the animal aspect and focus on

the strength and amazing aspects of

what people can do. We have been

able to take those crafts and grow

with them and modernise them and

bring it to a new level.

Quite a sight.

I'll say goodnight and it's over

to Stav for a check on the weather.

I'll say goodnight and it's over

to Stav for a check on the weather.

Thank you very much. A disappointing

cloudy grey, cool day today with

drizzle around. We are going to see

a change as we head overnight. A

weather front slowly moving in from

the west is going to introduce

outbreaks of rain. It's going to

slow down as it continues to move

eastwards. By the time we reach the

end of the night it will be across

our patch. We will start off with

that rain through the morning. It

will slowly clear its way eastwards

but there could be a handback. It

looks like eastern parts of the City

and to Essex e forescompl Area of

low pressure clears away and we see

a weak ridge of high pressure

building in across the country. That

means with light winds and clear

skies it's going to be a chilly

start to Thursday. There will be

mist and fog around. It's going to

be on the cool side. That's how it's

going to be towards the weekend, on

the cool side with cloud around