Guidance Notes and Best Practice Guides

FCO: When travelling, it’s important to stay alert to the possible risk of theft, fraud and other financial scams.  Not only is your money at risk, your travel plans could also be affected if you need to replace stolen credit cards or sort out problems caused by identity theft.
 
If you are a victim of fraud or theft, you should report the incident to the local police and contact your nearest British Embassy.  You will need a police statement to claim against your travel insurance.  If your credit card or travellers’ cheques have been stolen, you should cancel them to prevent their mis-use.
Press release ~ Victims of crime abroad ~ Travel advice for your destination ~ Travel money ~ Register with LOCATE to help us find you in an emergency
 
Defra: Britain’s backyard beekeepers are to be helped to avoid the problem of winter bee deaths by 400 Government-backed volunteer teachers. Soaring numbers of people are taking up the hobby amid concern over honey bee decline.  But due to challenges from pests & diseases, inexperienced beekeepers are losing more colonies over winter, so better skills are needed.
 
400 experts across England & Wales are to be trained to teach beekeepers good husbandry as part of a new project under the Government’s Healthy Bees Plan.  It will be run in partnership by the British Beekeeping Association (BBKA) and National Diploma of Beekeeping Board (NDBB), and jointly funded by Defra.
 
The partnership’s new “Course in a Case”, full of training materials, will be delivered through local beekeeping associations.  Beekeepers will be trained in groups by the new teachers alongside government bee inspectors, who already offer advice to beekeepers on pests and diseases.
Press release ~ National Bee Unit (NBU) ~ British Beekeeping Association (BBKA) ~ Healthy Bees Plan
 
HPA: Clinicians who deliver radiation to the brain & heart are being urged to continue to minimise their patients’ exposure, while maintaining essential medical benefits. New expert advice to the Health Protection Agency also highlights a need for further research to better understand links between radiation exposure & circulatory disease.
Press release ~ HPA: Radiation Publications ~ HPA’s formal response ~ Advisory Group on Ionising Radiation
 
Newswire – CABE: Creating high streets which are free from clutter and have a good strong identity should be easier from now on.  The newly published Manual for Streets 2 shows how streets can be designed to support vitality, economic performance and safety at the same time.
Press release (includes links to case studies) ~ Manual for Streets 2
 
NICE: In draft guidance published last week, mifamurtide (Mepact, Takeda), is not recommended for NHS use in combination with post-operative chemotherapy drugs for the treatment of high-grade non-metastatic, surgically treatable osteosarcoma.
Press release ~ Mifamurtide for the treatment of osteosarcoma
 
HO: The UK Border Agency has published revised policy guidance for Tier 2 of the points-based system (version 10/10) – See ‘Business and other Briefings’ section for more information.
 
EU News: The European Commission has published new guidelines to clarify rules for extractive industries in protected natural areas – See ‘EU Legislation, Initiatives, etc.’ section for more information.
Spotlight on women at Serco – Anita’s story