HR Investigation Of Senior Officers Has Already Cost 30K - Cyngor Gwynedd.

Dafydd Gibbard, CEO of cyngor Gwynedd has authored the council's 'Response Plan to the Our Bravery Brought Justice Report'. He writes - 
The Committee is asked to scrutinise the revamped Response Plan before it is submitted to Cabinet for formal adoption.

This January, his report has gone before the Care scrutiny committee, the Education/Economy scrutiny committee and the Governance and Audit committee. His report can be found here -
https://democracy.gwynedd.llyw.cymru//documents/g5668/Public%20reports%20pack%2013th-Jan-2026%2010.30%20Care%20Scrutiny%20Committee.pdf?T=10

The 'extended' Child Practice Review, by Jan Pickles, looked at events from 2017.
From a BBC article dated April, 2025 –
She looked at 2019 because, during Foden’s trial, the council’s former head of education Garem Jackson said that was when he made a senior safeguarding officer aware of concerns about Foden’s “close relationship” with some teen girls.
He said he was advised there was no need for a formal investigation as no official complaint had been made.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cly2njvjwzko

So who advised Jackson?
In this respect, Jan Pickles is vague...
From page 13 of her review - 

LA1 Head C&FS requested a meeting on a ‘Mater Diogelu Brys- Cyfrinachol’ (Urgent
Safeguarding matter - Confidential) via email to LA1 C&FS Senior Manager LADO.

On 15 April 2019 a meeting of four senior LA1 officers from LA1 Ed, LA1 C&FS and LA1 Legal departments was held to consider the information reported by Core SMT 1 to LA1 Head of Education 1. 

No formal minutes were made of this meeting however the Reviewers have seen transcripts of handwritten notes taken contemporaneously by two attendees. 
Core SMT 1 was not invited to the meeting to give further nformation. 
The meeting was deemed not to be a child protection meeting and was instead regarded as being for the consideration of a ‘professional issue’.

So a senior officer from the legal department was present...
Was this the monitoring officer?

Did any senior officer apart from Jackson give evidence at Neil Foden's trial?
Did the chair and vice chair of the school governors, both serving police officers, give evidence?
If not - why not..?

The Woods report will give more detail of the safeguarding failures. 
After HR completes it's investigations will the report be published? 
There were calls from councillors for the report to be released, even as an exempted document, this was flatly refused by the monitoring officer. Gibbard informed that the HR investigations had already cost £30,000...

The Jan Pickles review can be found here - 
https://www.northwalessafeguardingboard.wales/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/30.10.25-FINAL-ENGLISH-CPR-REPORT-_.pdf

A reminder that the children abused by Foden were receiving 'care' from the council...
Did Social workers of the 16+ team and the Youth Justice Service also fail the children? 
Both departments are to have their recent work scrutinised at a care scrutiny committee on the 29th, January.

In other news, Nia Jeffreys, the leader of the council, challenged the minutes of the North Wales Corporate Joint Committee. She explained that she was against excluding the public and press from a previous meeting and had asked that her vote against be recorded. 
The council leader's vote was not recorded...

Something is very wrong within Gwynedd council... 

Deny Delay Deflect - Cyngor Gwynedd Council...

Sally Holland, former children's commissioner, spoke at the full cabinet meeting of cyngor Gwynedd held on the 11th November, 2025. As the chair of the council's response board, set up after the abuse of children by Neil Foden, Holland presented the - 
QUARTERLY REPORT TO CABINET: RESPONSE PLAN PROGRAMME BOARD
which can be found here -  
https://democracy.gwynedd.llyw.cymru/mgConvert2PDF.aspx?ID=46340

  

The webcast of the cabinet meeting can be viewed here - 
https://gwynedd.public-i.tv/core/portal/webcast_interactive/1034943

Holland states the overarching objectives of the board are - 
Acknowledge, Apologise, Support, Establish, Learn, Improve and be Accountable.
So who are the four cabinet members providing accountability to the public...?

Dewi Jones, the cabinet member for education, is surely one of the four.
When will he make a statement on the failings of the governing body at Ysgol Friars? 
First and foremost, Neil Foden was accountable to the school governors.

From 2018, Pickles highlights - Child A reports concern re Foden’s relationship with Child C. Education speaknto Foden. Reported to LA1 C&FS and NWP.

The chair and vice chair of governors were NWP officers - Essie Ahari and Keith Horton.

The former head of education, Garem Jackson, after being contacted by a whistleblower met with senior officers of the children's deparment. Pickles writes - 
The meeting was deemed not to be a child protection meeting and was instead regarded as being for the consideration of a ‘professional issue.
ie senior officers appeared to be more concerned for Foden's reputation...

The former director of SS, Morwena Edwards was not a social worker, her background was finance, and she would have relied heavily on the advice of the now absent from work, Marian Parry Hughes and Dafydd Paul, senior safeguarding and quality officer.
Cyngor Gwynedd's legal team advised the officers...

Jan Pickles conducted an 'Extended' Child Practice Review, which means that some of the children Neil Foden abused were 'in care' at the time of the abuse or the preceding 6 months.
Were any of the children in foster care?
One child was living in a hostel. The hostel manager raised concerns in 2018.

Anglesey council (LA2) also raised concerns  - 
LA2 informed LA1 C&FS Senior Manager LADO that had Foden been a professional working in LA2, a meeting would have been convened under Part 4 of the AWCPP 2008.

The NSPCC are also scathing about Gwynedd's LADO -
From the Pickles review - my highlight...

At this time, Dilwyn Morgan, was cabinet member for children and family.
His tenure is best remembered for the Ombudsman for Wales reports highlighting serious concerns and failings within the children's SS, including social workers faking assessments on children.
Will Morgan be giving a statement of what he knew...?

It was a busy time for the SS department as the PSOW also found serious failings within the adult's department. The cabinet member with responsibility for the department was then Dafydd Meurig.
Treatment of one adult in Gwynedd's care was so bad it made the Ombudsman's Equality & Human Rights Casebook-2019/20

https://www.ombudsman.wales/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/104483-Equality-and-Human-Rights-Casebook_Eng_v03.pdf

Neil Foden was an abusive bully, who used inadequate 'policies and procedures' to protect himself from investigation and censure. Complaints were ignored or dealt with badly. If the complaint was serious enough then the 'vexatious complainant' rule could be used to shut the complaint down.

Page 79 of the Pickles review -  

 

The Pickles review can be found here -
 https://www.northwalessafeguardingboard.wales/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/30.10.25-FINAL-ENGLISH-CPR-REPORT-_.pdf

Foden smeared those who challenged him and reversed blame onto the victim - Darvo.
Blame the children - blame the parents - deny delay deflect.

In other news, the Governance and Audit committee were made aware of concerns within the county's care homes. Little information given and little action taken despite a lay member's grave concerns. 
Also 'bedblocking' has been a major issue for years now with the adult SS coming in for criticism...

Internal audits still show issues with staff training and breakfast clubs in particular -

 

The reports can be found in the agenda pack - 
https://democracy.gwynedd.llyw.cymru//documents/g5460/Public%20reports%20pack%2009th-Oct-2025%2010.00%20Governance%20and%20Audit%20Committee.pdf?T=10

Something is very wrong within Gwynedd council... 

 

 

 

 

Publish The Woods Report - Cyngor Gwynedd Council...

The Extended Child Practice Review, by Jan Pickles, into Neil Foden and his abuse of children in Gwynedd has finally been published.

An 'extended' CPR is undertaken when children were receiving care from the council at the time of the abuse. This care will presumably involve social workers of the children's SS, the 16+ team, the fostering team and perhaps youth justice - and no-one noticed...?

"We're employed to do a job, and that job is keeping children safe. In this case, Ysgol Friars failed, the Education Department failed, Children's Services failed, the local authority failed."
Jan Pickles OBE
https://www.itv.com/news/wales/2025-11-05/appalling-failure-allowed-paedophile-headteacher-to-run-reign-of-terror

Officials of the teachers union, NASUWT, are also scathing - 
“The report is right to highlight the courage of the child victims who exposed the criminal activities of Neil Foden in his role as the leading headteacher in Gwynedd Local Authority. Their courage stands in marked contrast to the total lack of moral courage by senior officials in the local authority.
Another - 
Processes and procedures must be followed objectively, dispassionately and fairly. There must be Independence and accountability. This has not happened in Gwynedd.” 
https://www.nasuwt.org.uk/article-listing/nasuwt-responds-foden-case-child-practice-review.html

What say local members of Unison and Unite within the cooncil? 
A public inquiry is needed...

In her review, Jan Pickles notes  - 


Anglesey council is LA2 Children's Services.
The LA1 C&FS is Gwynedd children & family department.
Jan Pickles review can be found in full here - 
https://www.northwalessafeguardingboard.wales/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/30.10.25-FINAL-ENGLISH-CPR-REPORT-_.pdf

The most senior officers with responsibility for safeguarding children in 2019 were the former director of SS, Morwena Edwards, the head of children and family department, Marian Parry Hughes and the senior safeguarding and quality officer/LADO, Dafydd Paul. 

The barrister, Genevieve Woods, was commissioned to investigate the actions of senior officers re Neil Foden in 2019. Her report should give more detail of the missed opportunities and exactly when cyngor Gwynedd's legal team became involved.
When will the Woods report be released..?

In other news, councillors are to receive a payrise...
The Democracy Services Committee held on the 4th, November discussed - 

and...

The full agenda pack can be found here -
https://democracy.gwynedd.llyw.cymru//documents/g5641/Public%20reports%20pack%2004th-Nov-2025%2010.00%20Democracy%20Services%20Committee.pdf?T=10 

A report from Mari Edwards, Learning and Development Manager updated the committee on training for councillors. The report is not good -

One member became so incensed that councillors were not attending training, he threatened to go to the press...

The committee is not webcast and so not available for later viewing by councillors or the public. 

A report authored by Vera Jones, Democracy and Language Manager, asks members to consider extending the number of council meetings broadcast. This stems from a Welsh Government consultation published in July- 
https://www.gov.wales/consultation-extending-duty-local-authorities-broadcast-meetings-html

On the 7th November,  the North Wales CJC Economic Well-being Sub-committee held a meeting to discuss the North Wales Growth Deal Performance and Risk report for the second quarter - 
 https://democracy.gwynedd.llyw.cymru//documents/s46336/North%20Wales%20Growth%20Deal%20-%20Quarter%202%20Performance%20and%20Risk%20Report.pdf

This meeting was then closed to the press and public. 

Later that day, the North Wales Corporate Joint Committee held a meeting to discuss the -
FLINTSHIRE AND WREXHAM INVESTMENT ZONE

This meeting also excluded the press and public...
The report can be found here - 
https://democracy.gwynedd.llyw.cymru//documents/g5644/Public%20reports%20pack%2007th-Nov-2025%2012.00%20North%20Wales%20Corporate%20Joint%20Committee.pdf?T=10

Something is very wrong within Gwynedd council...