News

Government report criticises the police

Published

11 years ago

March 3, 2015

A NEW government report into child protection by the police has highlighted failings in the way Dyfed-Powys police operate. Children were detained in Police custody ‘unnecessarily’ overnight, and in some cases delays in high tech support meant that the phones and computers of sex-offence suspects were not analysed for several months.

In cases involving teens, Child Sexual Exploitation was ‘not routinely considered,’ and in a number of cases the report said: ‘The behaviour and demeanour of the child was not recorded.’ It was noted that there was no system in place for ‘flagging’ records of children subject to the child protection plan, which could lead to control room staff and frontline officers not being aware of a child’s circumstances.

However, the report, by Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary praised Dyfed-Powys police for their efforts in improving the protection of children, and singled out the rapid initial response when child safety was at risk, and added that ‘safeguarding remained central to efforts while officers pursued criminal investigative opportunities.’

It also acknowledged the high workloads of a small specialist team, and accepted that the ‘large geographical area policed by the force posed an extra challenge.’

Of 33 cases reviewed by the Inspectorate, 12 were shown to demonstrate good practice. However the work on nine cases was considered inadequate.

Dru Sharpling of the HMIC said: “I was pleased to find that Dyfed-Powys Police has a strong commitment to improving the protection of children. For instance, a number of the cases we looked at where children had gone missing from home showed that the risk of child sexual exploitation had not been considered. In one case this resulted in children being referred to as ‘attention seekers’ which left them exposed to the risk of sexual exploitation. Dyfed-Powys needs to reduce the delays in investigations. We found in a number of cases that despite good initial investigative work, too often there were delays that would have an impact on the welfare of the children. I encourage Dyfed-Powys Police to act on our recommendations as a matter of urgency, and I have asked that within six weeks it provides me with an action plan to demonstrate how it will take forward our recommendations for improvement.”

Det. Superintendant Andy John ‘welcomed’ the findings. He said: “It is pleasing to see that the HMIC acknowledge that staff are highly committed, knowledgeable, and dedicated to providing the best possible outcomes for children.”

Over the course of the next two years, every police force in England and Wales will be assessed in how efficiently they safeguard children and young people who are at risk.

Community

Kurtz thanks Narberth postal workers for Christmas effort

Published

5 minutes ago

December 15, 2025

Tom Sinclair

Annual visit to Royal Mail delivery office recognises “exceptional dedication”

SAMUEL KURTZ MS has paid tribute to postal workers at the Royal Mail Delivery Office in Narberth during a visit this week, thanking staff for their hard work at the busiest time of the year.

The run-up to Christmas is the peak period for Royal Mail, with teams processing and delivering thousands of cards, parcels and festive packages for households and businesses across west Wales. During his tour of the depot, the Carmarthen West and South Pembrokeshire Member of the Senedd met with postal workers and heard first-hand about the pressures they face in keeping deliveries on track.

As part of the now annual tradition, Mr Kurtz also donated a bottle from Pembrokeshire’s award-winning Velfrey Vineyard for a free staff raffle.

Speaking after the visit, Samuel Kurtz MS said: “Every year, postal workers go above and beyond to make sure our Christmas cards and parcels arrive safely. Their dedication keeps communities connected, and I want to pay a heartfelt thank you to the team in Narberth for the incredible work they do at the most demanding time of the year.”

Education

School issues safeguarding alert over children’s use of Roblox

Published

15 minutes ago

December 15, 2025

Tom Sinclair

Ysgol Penrhyn Dewi warns parents about addictive gameplay, unsafe chat functions and scammers

YSGOL PENRHYN DEWI in St Davids has issued a safeguarding warning to parents after concerns were raised about children’s use of the popular online gaming platform Roblox.

In a letter sent to families today (Dec 15), Assistant Headteacher Louise Gray said the school had been made aware of a series of risks linked to the platform, which is widely used by children aged 8–13 – and in some cases younger.

Roblox allows users to create and play games developed by other players. However, the school says this user-generated model can expose children to inappropriate or harmful content depending on which games they access.

Range of risks highlighted

The letter sets out several specific safeguarding concerns, including:

Inappropriate content in user-created games
Highly addictive gameplay, with daily quests and reward systems designed to increase screen time
Easily changed parental controls, allowing children to adjust settings without verification
Chat features that expose younger players to inappropriate messages
Peer pressure from in-game ‘connections’, with children believing they know other users
Emotional dysregulation linked to heavy use of the platform
Scams, including fake offers of free Robux or cosmetic items

Parents are being urged to closely monitor how their children use the platform, who they interact with, and what content they can access.

Guidance available

The school has directed families to the Welsh Government’s Hwb website for further advice on parental controls and safe use of Roblox.

A Roblox spokesperson said: “Roblox is committed to providing a safe and positive experience for every member of our community, especially children and young people. We use a combination of chat filtering, human and AI-assisted moderation, parental controls and age verification tools to help protect our users from inappropriate content or behaviour.

“Younger players have more restrictive settings by default, and features such as voice chat and unfiltered text chat are limited to age-verified users. We encourage parents and carers to make use of our safety features, review their child’s settings regularly, and talk with them about staying safe online.”

“We continuously update our policies and systems in response to emerging risks, and we work closely with safety experts and regulators to help ensure Roblox remains a secure environment for creativity and play.”

Community

Festive creativity shines as Kurtz MS meets card competition winner

Published

1 hour ago

December 15, 2025

Tom Sinclair

SAMUEL KURTZ, Member of the Senedd for Carmarthen West and South Pembrokeshire, visited Pembroke Dock Community School on Friday 12th December to present a prize to the winner of this year’s Christmas Card Competition.

The competition invited pupils to design a festive Christmas card, with entries received from schools across the area. The standard of artwork was exceptionally high, showcasing the creativity, imagination and talent of young people in the community.

During the visit, Samuel Kurtz congratulated the winning pupil and thanked all those who took part, as well as the teachers and staff who supported the competition. Each child who entered also received a certificate in recognition of their hard work and effort.

Speaking after the presentation, Samuel said, “It was a real pleasure to visit Pembroke Dock Community School today and announce the winner of my Christmas Card competition. This year the winner is Mair Moseley, aged 10, and she designed a wonderful Santa image that really stood out. She has won a chocolate selection set and a £20 book token to enjoy over Christmas.”

He added, “ The creativity and enthusiasm shown by all the children was fantastic, and it made choosing a winner extremely difficult. I want to congratulate all the entrants and thank the staff for their ongoing support.”

Pembroke Dock Community School Headteacher, Mrs Katie Crockford-Morris, added, “We were delighted to welcome Samuel Kurtz MS to the school to present the prize. The children thoroughly enjoyed taking part in the competition, and they were incredibly proud to receive their certificates.”

The winning design will now be used as Samuel Kurtz’s official Christmas card this year, with one copy already on its way to His Majesty, King Charles.