News

‘Excellent achievement’ for social worker

Published

9 years ago

December 16, 2016

Top of the class: Sarah Handley and Jonathan Griffiths, Director of Social Services and Leisure

A SOCIAL WORKER for Pembrokeshire County Council (PCC) has achieved first-class honours alongside a prestigious award for being the highest-performing student in Wales.

Sarah Handley, 38, of Haverfordwest, achieved this outstanding feat whilst working full-time and balancing family life.

Having completed her three-year course, Sarah was awarded the Andrew Cornwell Prize (Wales) 2015 from the Open University for receiving the highest results of her graduate cohort in the BA Honours in Social Work.

In order to undertake this qualification, the mother-of-two applied for and received an annual bursary from PCC in 2012, without which Sarah says she wouldn’t have been able to do it.

Sarah said: “I’m just very grateful that Pembrokeshire County Council invest in their staff and give them the opportunity to progress in their career. It was the only way I could have studied for a professional qualification without stopping work – which wasn’t possible.”

PCC’s new Director of Social Services and Leisure, Jonathan Griffiths, said: “This is a fantastic achievement for Sarah on a personal level and demonstrates a real commitment to achieving this qualification. The Open University also recognises this excellent achievement by making this award.

“I can also say that Pembrokeshire County Council is very proud of this level of attainment. To be recognised nationally in this way must be a source of great joy to Sarah and her family, making all the effort worthwhile.”

Before becoming a trainee social worker, Sarah worked for five years as an assessment coordinator in the council’s joint discharge team based at Withybush Hospital. Prior to that, she had various roles within healthcare and health promotion.

Sarah said: “I had found a profession I felt passionate about, and with the children getting a bit older, I wanted to do something for myself. I used to start working at 9am and carry on late into the evening, and every weekend. You have to put your life on hold. I missed a lot of telly!

“But I was motivated, and my mindset was to do it properly, or don’t do it at all. And the girls were studying for GCSEs and A-levels at the time, so we just became a studying household.”

She added: “It was completely worth it. Even though it was hard, I loved it.”

As part of her degree, Sarah spent six months with PCC’s social services family intervention team and six months with the mental health team. Her role now is Continuing Health Coordinator specialising in adult care, which includes a substantial amount of work with dementia patients and more complex cases.

Sarah said: “It’s a hugely rewarding career. You work with people when they are at their most vulnerable, when they are going through traumatic experiences. If you can alleviate that and make it easier for them, it’s very rewarding.

“The most important thing is to be very open-minded, very non-judgemental – and honest. People have such varied lives and society is changing so much.”

Sarah said how her family had been incredibly supportive while she was studying and are very proud of her achievement. She is now hopeful that her experience might encourage other young parents to be positive about what the future might hold in terms of their career.

She said: “I didn’t do well in school, and I had my eldest daughter at the age of 19. But you should never write somebody off because they are a young parent. Good things can happen to you.”

Crime

Man charged with strangulation and assault offences after October incident

Published

18 minutes ago

December 14, 2025

Court Reporter

A MAN recorded in court as having no fixed abode has appeared before magistrates charged with intentional strangulation and two further assault offences.

Michael Sudbury, 50, whose address was not read out in court, but in Herald records is Glan Hafan, Llangwm, appeared before the bench facing multiple charges.

The charges relate to an incident on 22 October 2025 and include:

Intentional strangulation, contrary to section 75A of the Serious Crime Act 2015
Common assault
Assault by beating

No further details of the alleged incident were opened in court, and no plea was entered at this stage.

Sudbury was remanded on conditional bail, with the case listed to return to magistrates later this month.

Crime

Haverfordwest man sent to Crown Court on multiple serious charges

Published

40 minutes ago

December 14, 2025

Court Reporter

Defendant remanded in custody

A HAVERFORDWEST man has been sent to Swansea Crown Court to stand trial on a series of A 49-year-old Haverfordwest resident has been committed to Swansea Crown Court to face trial on multiple serious charges deemed too grave for magistrates to handle.

David Guy, of Market Street, Haverfordwest, appeared before Haverfordwest magistrates facing a series of allegations stemming from a single case. The charges, which were not detailed in open court, include:

Assault occasioning actual bodily harm (ABH)
A second count of assault
Criminal damage
An additional allegation of interpersonal violence
A public order offence

Magistrates declined jurisdiction, determining that the matters exceeded their sentencing powers, and sent the case in its entirety to Swansea Crown Court.

Guy was remanded in custody pending his next appearance. The court register notes: “Sent to Crown Court for trial in custody – next hearing at Swansea Crown Court.”

A date for the initial Crown Court hearing will be set administratively. Guy will remain in custody until then.

The Pembrokeshire Herald will provide further updates as the case progresses in the Crown Court.

Crime

Castlemartin man back before magistrates over multiple alleged assaults

Published

46 minutes ago

December 14, 2025

Court Reporter

Defendant remanded on conditional bail ahead of further hearing

A CASTLEMARTIN man has appeared repeatedly before magistrates this month over a string A 40-year-old man from Castlemartin has made repeated appearances before magistrates this month in connection with a series of serious alleged offences, including assault occasioning actual bodily harm (ABH), intentional non-fatal strangulation, common assault, and criminal damage.

Anthony Alcock, of Pwll Street, Castlemartin, is facing six linked charges stemming from incidents said to have occurred earlier this year. These appear to relate to the same complainant in what is understood to be a single ongoing domestic abuse prosecution.

During recent administrative hearings at Haverfordwest Magistrates’ Court, Alcock did not enter pleas while matters of bail and case management were addressed.

Charges Include:

Assault occasioning actual bodily harm (ABH)
Intentional non-fatal strangulation
Common assault on a woman
Criminal damage in a domestic context
Additional assault allegations involving the same complainant
Breach of bail conditions

Alcock was initially granted conditional bail but was subsequently brought before the court on two occasions for alleged breaches. On those instances, magistrates remanded him in custody ahead of further hearings. He was later re-granted conditional bail, subject to strict conditions such as no contact with the complainant and exclusion from specified locations.

Magistrates have now declined jurisdiction, ruling that the case—particularly the more serious charges involving non-fatal strangulation—is too grave for summary trial. It has been committed to Swansea Crown Court for plea, trial, or sentencing.

No detailed evidence has been presented in open court at this preliminary stage. Alcock remains on conditional bail pending his next appearance at the Crown Court.