New Director - Same Old...? Cyngor Gwynedd Council.

The new corporate director of cyngor Gwynedd is Catrin Thomas, replacing Geraint Owen, who had worked for the council even before its name change in 1996, after the first child abuse scandal.

From the Cambrian News -
Council leader Nia Jeffreys congratulated Catrin on her appointment, adding: “It is always a pleasure to work with Catrin, and I am really looking forward to the next chapter. Her recent experience working for Adra will also bring a different perspective to the council.

Council Chief Executive of Dafydd Gibbard said: “Catrin is already familiar to many of us here at Cyngor Gwynedd, and it is always great to see former members of staff returning to the authority with valuable experiences from other organisations. 
https://www.cambrian-news.co.uk/news/gwynedd-councils-new-corporate-director-817128

Catrin Thomas has been employed at cyngor Gwynedd for many years but went to work for Adra, as head of customer services - last year. 

She is now back and will be well aware of the problems within the council and the need to change the 'mindset' and 'culture' that the former director warned of.   

Moving on - is how Gwynedd council treat Freedom of Information requests under the FOI Act 2000 still a concern? The council has recently claimed its requested review from the Information Commissioner's Office was marked as 'reasonable' by the ICO. 

The council appear reluctant to answer certain FOI's especially with regard to Neil Foden, the disgraced head teacher who abused children and staff at Ysgol Friars and possibly other schools.
What happened to 'leave no stone unturned?'

Some FOI requests received by the council can be viewed here - 
https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/body/gwynedd_council  

Not all FOI requests are listed on the site as the council can be approached directly.

Requests for information from cyngor Gwynedd have been a cause for concern for some time now. It has created reports in spite of the evidence, ignored 'advice' from the ICO to release information and also reported that its data redaction software can destroy information.

Information is also collected by the council under GDPR. Its website collects data and sets cookies. 
To download the council's webcasts now require extra cookies to be placed on a person's computer. One site has flagged Gwynedd's compliance with  GDPR, ePR as high risk - 

It is likely that the council is compliant with law but, should this flag be of concern...?

In other news, the Jan Pickles Child Practice Review will soon be completed.
Cyngor Gwynedd's Education and Economy Scrutiny committee report into Neil Foden is also expected in September. 
When will the Woods report be released?

Something is very wrong within Gwynedd council... 

 

 

 

 

 

Criteria For Derwen - Cyngor Gwynedd Council's Service For Disabled Children...

The admission by one of cyngor Gwynedd's interim heads of the children and families department that their reporting is not 'completely accurate' comes as no surprise. There have been questions to the integrity of the council's reports going back many years...

One early example is the Annual Report on the handling of complaints by Adult, Health and Well-being Department and the Children and Family Support Department for 2015-2016, written by the former workforce support manager. 
That report can be found here - 
https://democracy.gwynedd.llyw.cymru/documents/s7887/Adroddiad%20Blynyddol%202015-16%20Sterfynol.pdf

The officer had personally led at least one of the investigations highlighted in her report which has been publicly called out as a whitewash. 

A Stage 2 complaint was raised. The investigator asked the customer care/complaint officers who the senior complaints manager was? Nobody knew...
Dafydd Paul, the council's senior safeguarding officer, then became active in the role from 2018. 

One recommendation from the Lost In Care report states - Every social services authority should be required to appoint an appropriately qualified or experienced children's complaints officer.

Since then, concerns to the integrity of the SS complaints handling reports have been raised with the council's democratic service, scrutiny committees, councillors and even cabinet members - all ignored. 
A question to possible data manipulation has also been ignored...

Cyngor Gwynedd has also had issues with completing recommendations for improvement and has been caught misleading government agencies in the past. A reminder that an investigation by the agencies will cease if a local authority accepts the recommendations...

Councillor Gwynfor Owen has recently raised questions of the criteria used to access Derwen, Gwynedd's service for disabled children. It is presumed the councillor was not content with the officer's response. Nor should he be. The 'criteria' has been called out as unlawful and discriminatory in the past. 

Pre pandemic, the PSOW made recommendations - agreed to by the council that - 
70. The Council should review its Derwen policy to ensure its criteria aligns with the Social Services and Wellbeing (Wales) Act 2014 and the Equality Act 2010’s definition of ‘disability’, and ensure staff are informed about any changes (within three months). 

In 2020, the Ombudsman wrote of its expectations of the council re its Derwen policy -

In spite of the further (and immediate) reviews supposedly undertaken by cyngor Gwynedd, the Hugh Morgan OBE report also recommends  - 

 

The Hugh Morgan report begins -
 

His full report can be found here - 
https://gwyneddsfailingcouncil.blogspot.com/2021/04/finally-gwynedd-councils-autism-report.html 

Hugh Morgan, also recommends staff training in ASD, but according to information given to the PSOW by Gwynedd council this training has already been completed as a recommendation from a previous investigation. 

The Ombudsman for Wales recommendations from an investigation in 2018 include - 

Have councillors had sight of any of the various reviews mentioned?

The Ombudsman's office has been provided clear evidence of wrong doing by senior officers - not investigated. It has also apologised for the failings of one of its officers and the former PSOW had to personally apologise to one family for failings in another investigation after an independent review.

The former children's commissioner, Sally Holland, also did not properly engage when concerns with children's social workers were raised with her office, in 2016. However, her office did comment on the council's criteria -
The Commissioner and our policy officers are aware of the criteria issue and this information will inform their ongoing work with Welsh Government. 

Professor Holland is now chair of Gwynedd's response plan programme board set up after the sexual abuse of children by Neil Foden and the failings of senior officers to hold him to account. Holland recently updated the council's cabinet members and that webcast can be found here - 
https://gwynedd.public-i.tv/core/portal/webcast_interactive/999635

In other news, the ICO has concluded a review into the council's handling of FOI requests. Gwynedd council are stating that it has been ranked 'reasonable'. Some FOI requestors would disagree. Has any councillor sighted the review from the ICO?

Something is so very wrong within Gwynedd council...