The Care Scrutiny Committee of Cyngor Gwynedd council received the SS annual complaints handling report last week. It is the first time the complaints report has come before scrutiny since 2019, after which the senior complaints manager was called out for misleading the committee.
One councillor mentioned he had made a complaint against social services during the pandemic and expressed his discontent with the process and urged the department to take complaints more seriously. He mentioned that the response to his Stage 2 complaint seemed to be to defend the service.
Historic complaints were reported...
As the report was written last year, but only just released, it can be presumed that these complaints stem from 2013. The scant detail given of the historic complaints against the Arfon children's team is concerning. Were the young people in care at the time? Was the safeguarding team informed?
Not one councillor of Gwynedd's Care Scrutiny Committee asked a question in relation to the two historic complaints mentioned in the SS departments report...
People will remember the north Wales abuse scandal of the 70's
through to the 1990's.
Gwynedd council sacked Alison
Taylor, the social worker who blew the whistle on the abuse.,,
The scrutiny committee meeting of the 11th April was webcast and a recording can be found here -
https://gwynedd.public-i.tv/core/portal/webcast_interactive/873653
The SS report states that one historic complaint can not be investigated as the social worker has left the council. This may be true but Gwynedd council has in a previous investigation, told an independent investigator that one employee could not be questioned as the officer had left the council. This officer returned to the council after the investigator had concluded her interviews with witnesses.
In another case, the council informed investigating officers that an officer could not be questioned as they were on long term sick. Once that investigation was concluded, the officer returned to work, this time for Anglesey council...
The senior officers have also been called out for interfering in an 'independent investigation' by the Ombudsman for Wales. The investigator reported feeling bullied and overwhelmed by senior officers at a meeting held to discuss her initial report.
Marian Parry Hughes and Aled Gibbard were the most senior officers present at this meeting alongside the social worker complained about for undertaking a fake assessment on a child. The social worker was also called out for sending what the parents called a malicious email designed, it was claimed, to cause trouble for them - this was denied...
The investigator's initial report upheld all complaints...
After this meeting, and a final third revision, this was no longer the case and only then was the report accepted by the Director of SS.
Are investigators only paid when their reports are accepted by senior officers..?
Gwynedd council's SS complaints handling has been shocking and for those who have endured the process, it appears the system has been used defensively and to protect reputational damage...
One serious complaint against an officer was downgraded to an enquiry by the former Director. Downgrading complaints means that the details are not recorded so avoiding scrutiny.
Are there more such cases?
Something is so very wrong within Gwynedd council...
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