Cyngor Gwynedd's Director Of SS Annual Report Blames Facebook For Poor Staff Well Being...

Cyngor Gwynedd's director of SS has published his Annual Report. 
Huw Dylan Owen uses a generic template and names it the Social Services Annual Report.

Mention of audits and reviews of the department can be found under the section 'Further Information' at the end of the report - but no links to Care Inspectorate Wales reports are included.  

It is to be presented to the full Council meeting to be held on the 2nd July, 2026 - 
https://democracy.gwynedd.llyw.cymru//documents/s50720/Item%209%20-%20Appendix%201%20-%20Social%20Services%20Report%2025-26.pdf

Owen begins with an apology - 
This year has been one of the toughest that Cyngor Gwynedd has faced in its 30-year history. Social services, and in particular the Children’s Services, have been through a period of significant challenge and change, following serious failures in the service and the Our Bravery Brought Justice Child Practice Review, which highlighted weaknesses in safeguarding.
There has been a major change in leadership across adult and children’s services. It is important to recognise that people have suffered and have been seriously hurt, and on behalf of Cyngor Gwynedd, I apologise. 

You had one job...
There were no weaknesses in safeguarding.
Neil Foden was able to abuse because those that should have stopped him failed - miserably...

The rest of his report is bloated, lacks clarity and appears to confuse mere activity with little regard to the outcomes for people. The traffic light system also appears to be misused, giving a green light to one project that no longer exists.

On page 40 under the section Mental Health Service - 
How can we do things better?
There are some situations where individuals with complex needs fall between services, leading to delays and discussions about responsibility for their care. This includes cases such as autistic individuals who do not meet the eligibility criteria for learning disability services, young people transitioning into adult services...

Why on earth has Owen mentioned autistic people under mental health? 
Since when has autism been a mental health condition? 

Of even more concern is what he says about autistic individuals without a learning disability, that they continue to be failed and are still 'falling through the cracks'

The Autism team was created after a complaint to the PSOW and the council then commissioned a review of autism services by Hugh Morgan OBE. This was meant to find ways to support autistic children and adults - without a learning disability - this same review also recommended that a transition social worker be employed with immediate effect, this the Ombudsman was told by the council was being implemented in October 2020.

Correspondence from the PSOW, Nick Bennett, from October 2020 - (personal information removed)

 

What happened? Nearly six years down the line these failings still exist, how on earth has nothing changed for this cohort of people, even after the 'promises' made by senior officers from the CEO, through the legal team to department heads and their senior managers...

                                                         *******************                                      

There is no update on the officers 'absent from work' nor the potential £250,000 their wages has cost the children's department so far. Both social workers are still registered as working/studying in the county of Gwynedd...

Registered Persons

Forename(s)	Surname	County of work address/ County of study	Registration Number
Dafydd	Paul	Gwynedd	W/1059093
Dafydd	Paul	Gwynedd	W/1059093

Showing 1 to 2 of 2 rows 

 

Registered Persons

Forename(s)	Surname	County of work address/ County of study	Registration Number
Marian Parry	Hughes	Gwynedd	W/1056715

Showing 1 to 1 of 1 rows

 

Is there not an obligation on the part of the council to report employees to their professional body under certain circumstances? If things are bad enough that employees are made 'absent from work' for over a year now, one would expect that the two employees 'absent from work' should have been referred to Social Care Wales? 

 

These two officers ran a department that not only failed children but ignored law, policies and procedures and parent blamed and smeared those who tried to raise concerns - over many years. 
                                                                 
                                                                ***************

Deflect...
Owen also fails to mention that Jan Pickles undertook an EXTENDED Child Practice Review. 
This type of review is only undertaken when a child was on the child protection register or was a looked after child (or care leaver under 18) at any point in the 6 months before the incident.

Deny...
The director is surely old enough to remember the North Wales Child Abuse scandal. 
This happened in the former county council areas of Gwynedd and Clwyd and involved the sexual and physical abuse of children in the councils 'care' homes. 

A reminder that Gwynedd County council sacked the social worker who blew the whistle... 

The following page gives more detail of the statutory investigation chaired by Sir Ronald Waterhouse and links to the Lost in Care report published in 2000, the Macur Review from 2012 and details of Operation Pallial set up in 2012 - 
https://www.inquestsandinquiries.com/projects/waterhouse 

Delay...
Owen also fails to make mention of Canolfan Brynffynnon.
The director may claim that the showing of the TV documentary into the PRU came too late to be included in his annual report, but Owen must know the council has been paying compensation to former pupils since 2019. 

Who did know and when..?
The PRU was mentioned by councillors in a services scrutiny committee in 2016. 
There must have been other discussions in closed forums and meetings behind closed doors with the cabinet and the Plaid group, in particular. What of the other councillors?

A reminder that Morwena Edwards, the former director of SS, quit her post shortly after a final report into the PRU was received in 2022. 

Workforce well being...
Cliques within cliques and a toxic culture of nepotism, cronyism and bullying has meant that staff have been leaving in droves, most notable since the pandemic.

Remembering that Owen started with an apology he then goes on the attack...
On page 9 - 

 

The director's duplication of his sentence in the first paragraph is sloppy and it suggests a sentence may be missing.

So what 'measures' is Owen referring to?
What specific policy?
What reporting processes?

Read the room...
Social media gives the public a platform to discuss and raise issues that affect their local communities. 
The failings of social workers and departments that Owen is now ultimately responsible for has caused pain and trauma and has ruined lives. The financial cost to the public purse will also be considerable.
People are angry and understandably so.

Social media also allows former and present employees of the council, and other organisations, a safe space to raise concerns in small groups or even anonymously.

No safe places...
Has there been directed surveillance of social media by cyngor Gwynedd? 
While the occasional viewing of public posts is considered acceptable, the recording and repeated or targeted monitoring of individuals or groups is not and could be considered unlawful under RIPA.

Learn lessons from Bristol...
Bristol council has recently been caught spying on a local parents SEND group.
The lack of trust with the council's officers will take years to mend - if ever.

Has cyngor Gwynedd infiltrated or monitored parent groups in the county?
What of campaign groups such as those opposed to Article 4?
Is the council monitoring councillors accounts?

A public inquiry into Neil Foden AND this council's failings is needed. 
Release the Canolfan Brynffynnon files.
Publish the Woods report.

Something is so very wrong within Gwynedd council... 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Letters Warning Of Neil Foden Sent To Kirsty Williams AM Hywel Williams MP In 2019...

In 2019, the Plaid Cymru Member for Parliament for Arfon, Hywel Williams, was sent a letter that raised concerns regarding the Education Workforce Council and Neil Foden.

 

Presumably, Williams ignored the letter as a follow up letter was sent in November 6 months later...

 

Kirsty Williams, then Minister for Education in the Welsh Assembly was also sent a letter - 

The letters appeared online after they were put through the door of a digital creator from Bangor,
There was a covering letter - 

 

So did the author get a response from either the then MP or Welsh Minister?
What action did they take?

What of Angela Jardine, chair of the Education Workforce Council?
Was an investigation completed?

It does appear that many people were warned of Neil Foden - yet he continued to abuse...

 

  

Cyngor Gwynedd - Are The Public Welcome At Council Meetings..?

To attend a public meeting of Gwynedd council or one of its committees, you are first met with a locked door to the building where the meetings take place. A sign instructs visitors to sign in at another building across the road 100 metres away.

There you are informed that if attending a meeting you do not have to sign in...

Returning to the venue - a public building - you then have to wait for someone to open the door for you to gain access. This can take some time and means you can miss the beginning of the meeting and cause disruption to others when you take your seat.

 
On leaving the meetings, members of the public are reporting they have been approached by a woman demanding to know who let them into the building. One visitor says they felt harangued by the official and had to walk away. 

Another person who attended a meeting said that the committee he attended broke for lunch so he left the council chamber and walked down the stairs to the exit. The monitoring officer, Iwan Evans, stood at the bottom, staring at him. He nodded and said Hi  - Evans ignored him...

With Evans was Vera Jones, the Democratic Services manager, who approached him also asking how and why he was in the building and said she was asking as she was interested in how to improve things for those attending public meetings.

Jones was told that being allowed access to the public building, having a visitors book in the actual building and signage to the chamber would improve things for visitors. Jones agreed but did not give an explanation as to why these things are not already in place...

The visitor says that he felt so uncomfortable by Jones' questioning that he did not return to the committee meeting after the lunch break. One wonders if that was the intention of the two officers?

Have others had similar experiences when attending meetings? 

Something is very wrong within Gwynedd council...

   

 

 

 

Cyngor Gwynedd Council apologises to former pupils of Canolfan Brynffynnon who were abused...

The Ffordd Gwynedd way..?

Gwynedd Council has apologised to former pupils of the Brynffynnon Center in Felinheli, acknowledging that pupils had been abused there.

 

In an investigation into what happened following the closure of the Centre, which was an education unit for children with behavioural and emotional needs, the Y Byd ar Bedwar program reveals that Gwynedd Council's insurers have started paying compensation to former pupils.

 

Responding to the programme, Gwynedd Council said that it had come to light that pupils had been abused there, and that they 'sympathise with the victims and apologise to them.'

 

Five former pupils have received payment from the council since April 2026 after bringing legal proceedings based on their experiences at the centre.

 

Another 14 former pupils are currently in the process of claiming compensation.

These payments are made without any admission of liability.

The centre was suddenly closed in 2014. A year later, Sion Bedwyr Evans, acting head of the unit, and Garry Vaughan Roberts, a member of staff there, were accused of 49 crimes of cruelty towards children between September 2006 and March 2014.

 

Both denied the charges, with a trial scheduled for 2016.

But the case was dropped after the Crown Prosecution Service received new evidence from the police, saying there was no realistic chance of a conviction.

 

The charges came as a result of complaints from 24 pupils who spoke to North Wales Police following the closure of the Centre.

 

One of those was Dillon Roberts, a young autistic man who attended the centre between 2010-2014 when he was a child.

 

In April 2026, he received compensation of £12,000 from Gwynedd Council.

  

"There was one time when I was dragged into the headmaster's office. One of the teachers grabbed me, and the headmaster had a strimmer. He grabbed me by my head and my neck. The strimmer was also running. I thought I was going to die," he said.

 

According to Dillon, during his interview with North Wales Police, he mentioned another alleged abuse:

"When I was in the kitchen, the teachers put salt in your drink. They were bullies."

 

As part of Dillon's case against Gwynedd Council, he said:

"I was abused by Mr. Roberts because of my size. Because I was too big, I had 'breasts', and Mr. Roberts would scoop them up and squeeze them. This used to hurt me and it made me feel ashamed."

 

Dillon also claims that staff at the centre bribe and threaten children:

 

"I remember on a Friday, we were going to (one of the teachers') office to get irons and brass, and he had a bag already - a load of pound pieces.

"They were just saying, 'Don't go to your mother or father, or, if you go to them, we'll kill them.' I was afraid to go there every day."

 

In 2017, a year after the case was dropped, Dillon's parents received a letter from Gwynedd Council's Children and Family Support Department.

 

The letter acknowledged that some of the accusations made by some of the children had been confirmed, recommending that the Council, as the body that employed the staff of the Brynffynnon Centre, conduct its own investigation into the matter.

 

Katherine Yates is a lawyer who is well known for representing some of the victims of the paedophile Neil Foden in their cases against Gwynedd Council.

 

In August 2024, the grandfather of one of Brynffynnon's former pupils contacted her to ask for help. Now, over 20 parents and former pupils have come together to start bringing legal proceedings against Gwynedd Council.

 

Katherine Yates said: “I was amazed at how quickly people came forward.

 

"And what was amazing was the nature of the allegations, and how similar they were from different people - some of these children didn't know each other, they weren't even at school at the same time - and yet the allegations are all similar."

 

There are allegations from some former pupils of Brynffynnon Center and their parents regarding physical and emotional abuse.

 

"Most of the children complain of being placed in tires up to their necks and having balls kicked at their heads. There are many examples where children have been forced to fight each other just for the amusement of the staff. There are examples of children being forced to eat."

 

Y Byd ar Bedwar has spoken to several parents who have brought legal proceedings against Gwynedd Council as a result of their children's experience at Brynffynnon Centre, revealing that two former pupils received compensation in 2019.

 

The parents of one of the former pupils who have received compensation say they raised concerns with Gwynedd Council in 2010 - four years before Brynffynnon closed.

 

"The parents were complaining, a lot of them. But nothing was happening."

 

Google translated - 

https://newyddion.s4c.cymru/article/cyngor-gwynedd-ymddiheuro-gyn-ddisgyblion-canolfan-brynffynnon-gafodd-cam-drin

 

Something is very wrong within Gwynedd council...

 

 

 

 

Article 4 Test Run @ Cyngor Gwynedd...

A report entitled 'Article 4 Direction', authored by Gareth Jones - Assistant Head of Environment Department and Iwan Evans - Head of Legal Services, is to be presented to the Communities Scrutiny Committee on the 11th June, 2026. 

It is a very informative document, revealing a lack of candour not only on the part of cyngor Gwynedd but also it would appear on the part of Welsh government. 

The document can be found in the agenda pack for the meeting here - 
https://democracy.gwynedd.llyw.cymru//documents/g5712/Public%20reports%20pack%2011th-Jun-2026%2010.30%20Communities%20Scrutiny%20Committee.pdf?T=10

At the full council meeting, held on the 14th, May, Gruffydd Williams, asked this question - 
Following the fact that article 4 was quashed by a court as a result of what has been ruled as misleading details by this Council, I previously asked if this Council would apologise to campaigners who fought so hard to get Article 4 in force, and there was no apology.
The Council's right of appeal has now been refused. Therefore, is the Council finally going to apologise to the campaigners for article 4, patriots, linguists and taxpayers, following the fact that it is now clear that a shortcoming in the key paperwork caused Article 4 to be quashed and that a sum of money of over half a million has been wasted?"

Response from the Cabinet Member for the Environment, Councillor Craig ab Iago - 
As I noted when answering a very similar question from the Member at the Council meeting in December, we remain determined to ensure that the people of Gwynedd have access to suitable housing in their communities.
That's why the Council introduced an Article 4 Direction – as part of a package of measures to manage the significant impact of second homes and short-term holiday accommodation on the housing market.
This decision was based on significant effort, including in-depth research, extensive consultation and expert advice.
Despite our disappointment with the legal outcome and our request to appeal the High Court's decision, I am confident that our decision to introduce Article 4 has been sound and appropriate. The Council acted responsibly and in good faith in addressing issues that are hugely important to the future of our communities.
This experience, including the 12-month period during which Article 4 was in place in the Gwynedd Planning Authority Area, will be key as we decide on the best way forward.  

ab Iago did not apologise.
Did he actually vote at cabinet for Article 4..?

Many people are of the belief that the near half a million pounds this has cost the public purse was money from cyngor Gwynedd's own coffers - it is not...

The Article 4 Direction report reveals that £311,683,05 has come from Welsh government...

  

4.48 '...which can be amended and re-used in the future'.

Why did Craig ab Iago not explain this?

Are Welsh government and cyngor Gwynedd acting together to control the housing market?

Empowered by the legal knowledge gained, it is apparent that the recent Article 4 action was not to actually implement Article 4 but an exercise in HOW to implement Article 4 in the future...

A test run and an opportunity for the council to be in a position to advise neighbouring authorities on the application of Article 4.
Regardless of the trauma and harm caused? 
Shocking... 

 

Will the new Plaid Cymru government now be supporting the Plaid controlled Gwynedd council in such matters? Will Gwynedd become a test bed for new Plaid policies?

It's not over... 

The meeting will be held on the 11th, June at 10.30am and can be viewed here - 
https://gwynedd.public-i.tv/core/portal/webcast_interactive/1098120

Something is so very wrong within Gwynedd council...