A family of foster carers are facing bankruptcy and homelessness after they signed up to a Government scheme to renovate their house to be used for disabled children's short breaks. Two years ago the Waite family received a grant from Leicestershire County Council to transform their home into a respite centre for severely disabled foster children. But after a dispute arose with the builder over the £75,000 extension to their three bedroom house in Leicestershire, Mark Waite, 44, and his wife Clair, 39, now face losing everything they have worked for. The couple, who represent the third generation in a 100-year family tradition of fostering disabled children, have had to sell all their furniture and clothes on ebay to pay solicitor's fees and say they now face total ruin. They say the council has "left them out in the cold" over the legal wrangle, leaving them responsible for tens of thousands of pounds of debt which will almost certainly result in them ending up on the streets with their two children.
EAGERLY BITING his nails, this little squirrel is clearly nervous of looming predators as he searches for his meal .
BEHIND the doors of this building, with its stacks of mattresses and discarded remains of wheelchairs, lies another victim of austerity cuts .
HUDDLED together on a branch, a pair of adorable Javan scops owls soak up the sun .
While often referred to as the kings of the jungle, gorillas - for all their might - are notorious hydrophobes .
LIFTING their heads high and bumping beaks, these aggressive pelicans clash over fish .
Leaping out of the ocean, a group of gentoo penguins fly through the air before landing safely on an iceberg .
SOARING through the air, a hungry white-tailed kite prepares to snatch a vole from his mother’s claws .
AN ANGRY giraffe gave a bush-riding cyclist a scare when he stomped his £2K bike into the dirt .
A man who conned tax officials out of £34 million and funded a lavish lifestyle of luxury hotels and restaurants has been jailed for one of the longest sentences in British criminal fraud history .
GETTING behind the camera, this monkey practices his photography skills on his friends .
WEARING tiny Christmas accessories, these adorable babies get into the spirit of the season .