News

Calls for Bryn to resign over council paedophile scandal

Published

10 years ago

July 15, 2014

backed bryn THERE are fresh calls today (Tuesday, July 15) for Wales’ highest paid council chief, Bryn Parry Jones, to resign. This time there is mounting pressure on him over the way Pembrokeshire County Council dealt with allegations about a former senior council youth worker who went on to be jailed for six years for sexually abusing a child.

And as a result of a BBC Wales Week In Week Out investigation into the case, the Children’s Commissioner for Wales says he wants to re-open the case files at the Council to discover whether children were left at risk. Children’s Commissioner Keith Towler told the BBC:

‘I’ll take look at it because I think what you’re raising there are very serious allegations. That probably needs an independent look. In terms of my responsibility as Children’s Commissioner, if I take the view that things happened to children in the past could help to improve the lives of children today then I certainly have got the powers of remit to take look at it.’

In 2005 a whistle-blower warned bosses that Mik Smith was behaving inappropriately with children and could pose as a risk – but Smith, from Haverfordwest, was given a verbal warning.

mike This month paedophile Smith was jailed for six years for sexually abusing an eight-year-old boy.

The offences happened after he’d been sacked. Whistle-blower Sue Thomas – who originally warned bosses about Smith’s inappropriate behaviour – thinks that the Council made a serious mistake when they gave Mik Smith a verbal warning in 2005:

‘I still can’t get my head round it because there were so many good hard-working professional people that came forward with complaints – I cannot understand why we were not listened to.

I can’t comprehend what type of person in management wouldn’t listen to it and wouldn’t be concerned and wouldn’t want to deal with it – I’m lost for words.’

Further complaints were made about Smith in 2009 and 2011, and he was eventually sacked in 2012 after a re-investigation was ordered by the Welsh Government.

Mik Smith’s recent court case has prompted questions about whether the Council should have sacked Smith sooner and whether it did enough to protect children who he came into contact with.

The Council’s Chief Executive Bryn Parry-Jones said that there were significant failings in the disciplinary standards used to handle the case. The Council says that its investigation at the time revealed no evidence of criminal activity, but it regretted that there were significant failings in the disciplinary standards in its education directorate in 2005 when allegations were made about Smith.

joyce Joyce Watson AM says this is the latest in a series of failures by the Council to properly protect vulnerable children. She wants Bryn Parry Jones – who earns more than the £228,000 a year – to step down. She told The Heralds:

‘I think it’s time for him to go and I’m not shy of saying that – he has been the permanency in all of the negative reports that have been there and there have been a number of them. You cannot be the highest paid Chief Executive in Wales because you are worth that money, and reside over failure. Repeated failure.’

The programme has spoken to an independent social worker who investigated the allegations against Mik Smith on behalf of the Council in 2005. The social worker told the BBC that she was “surprised” that Smith had been dealt with by way of a verbal warning at the time.

Bryn Parry Jones said that the council’s investigation at the time revealed no evidence of criminal activity and that since that time the Council has completely changed its procedures and management of the Education department and is confident that past failings would not be repeated now. The Council also said that no manager from the former Education directorate involved in the decision-making in 2005 is currently employed by the Authority.”

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10 Comments

Helen mills

July 15, 2014 at 8:23 am

Mr Parry be true to the wonderful people of pembrokeshire & more so to yourself & step down. No one in the sector you work in should be awarded the salary you take from these wonderful people who pay your salary be honest tell me what you do in a day to get this amount as you have minions that work for you so you sit back feet up as you can all see in this article.
A young lad scared for the rest of his life but Smiths gratification in minutes & forgotten about until the next time, terror runs through that young lads body how dare you & Smith get away with us h behaviour?
People of pembrokeshire need to shout louder.
Tomos

July 15, 2014 at 8:30 am

Does any one think he’ll do the DECENT thing?

There’s been no sign of that “weakness” in his personality, just sharp elbows getting to that tax funded trough and s** the weak,the disabled and the poor – who I always thought the state was there to help and support.

Now we find out our children were not safe, we’ve had enough from the IPG about paying the most to get the best ** HOLLOW LAUGH** , PCC are just going from one calamity to the next –

surely the memebers of this “party” must be SO ashamed of what has been done (or not done) in their names to get their special responsibility allowances – now they’ve found this sort of information they MUST get a back bone and think about the ppl of Pembrokeshire
Peter Warrender

July 15, 2014 at 12:39 pm

I know is salary and pension pot plus car allowance are an abuse to the council tax payers of Pembrokeshire. The councillors who allowed this abuse should be sacked. On the paedophile front the buck should stop with him, he is the CEO so must take full responsibility for what happens within the PCC. What else is he being paid a massive salary for?
Roy Mcgurn

July 15, 2014 at 1:09 pm

The Chief Executive is several layers removed from this case. His culpability, if any, stems from his cost cutting of council spending, particularly Social Services. Scandals such as this can hit even high spending authorities, so it is difficult to prove cost cutting is a direct cause of this case. However, in cutting costs, a culture of denial has permeated the authority, as some of their antics do not stand up to detailed scrutiny. (The recent irregularities in grants awarded in Pembroke Dock being an example.)If an investigation did indeed determine that this culture of denial was a primary cause of children being put at risk, then his position should be untenable.
Paul Hill

July 15, 2014 at 7:00 pm

The man has a brass neck, he is’nt going to walk away from his gravy train, he’s surrounded himself with allies and they are all in the trough, they will just ignore this as usual…
Lofty

July 15, 2014 at 9:27 pm

I was part of that investigation back in 2005 and witnessed first hand the inappropriate behaviour that monster carried out on our vulnerable young boys in his care. He lied, deceived and manipulated many to serve his own disgusting crime. I am pleased that all those who managed him have been removed from their posts and quite rightly so. We went through hell and lost a good colleague in the process – sacked due to his lies! I just hope and pray that justice will finally be done and BPJ is finally removed from his office too.
Tomos

July 16, 2014 at 8:21 pm

I’m not discussing this case, only the principle – It looks as though ppl who did nothing when Cyril Smith or Jimmy saville was guilty of dreadfully corrupt things, may well have their or their families reputations shredded or may even go to jail for doing nothing when they are caught possibly 20/30 years after the guilty are long gone – only warning those who think they afre safe!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
woody

July 16, 2014 at 8:52 pm

Watched the documentary last night…Unbelievable! That the chief executive on 220k+ huge benefits per annum can wash his hands of this because he stated he was on holiday!!!!….Also he should be on his knees apologising to the very brave whistle blower after writing such a bombastic chauvinistic condescending letter in reply to her concerns. She lost her job over this and had to move out of the County while Bryn just went on holiday..Bryn Parry Jones needs to be pushed as his arrogance won\’t allow him to resign….No other institution in there right mind would leave this man alone in charge of washing dishes let alone being left in charge of managing millions of pounds of rate payers money …..Bryn Parry Jones and his cronies are a shambolic bunch of opportunistic amateurs riding the red wine jus gravy train.This is not the only scandal to hit Bryn and his lap dancing generals at the PCC…..when will the Welsh Assembly take a REAL interest in the internal incompetence and downright deceit that dogs this Council. I know of no one person who has a good word to say about this bunch of cowboys.Also was it true a memo went around the Council that nobody was allowed to talk to Bryn Parry Jones if they passed him in the council corridors as \”his mind was always on far greater and important things\” ?????..And does he really have a private lift installed to his own office????
Milford Matters

July 17, 2014 at 1:02 pm

Teflon man will escape again – nothing sticks to this guy – he will supported by his Council Cabinet Colleques and survive till the next election.
Keanjo

July 17, 2014 at 6:02 pm

Failure ,failure ,failure crisis, crisis ,crisis .When will it stop? When will someone assert their authority and help us ?

News

The Liberal Democrats call for Crown Estate to be devolved to Wales

Published

19 mins ago

January 8, 2025

Tom Sinclair

THE LIBERAL DEMOCRATS have renewed calls for the Crown Estate to be devolved to Wales during a debate on the Crown Estate Bill in the House of Commons today.

Welsh Liberal Democrat MP David Chadwick urged that Wales be treated equally to Scotland, where the Crown Estate has already been devolved, arguing that Wales deserves the same economic benefits.

This follows a previous attempt by the Liberal Democrats to amend the Bill in the House of Lords before Christmas, which was voted down by Labour.

It is estimated that the Crown Estate will generate at least £1 billion in profit from offshore wind energy lease agreements in Welsh waters over the coming years.

David Chadwick MP said: “It is unacceptable that Wales continues to be treated as a lesser nation to Scotland when it comes to the devolution of powers.

“Labour promised change after the General Election, yet they seem intent on maintaining the status quo and depriving Wales of key tools to boost our economic success.

“If the income raised from renewables owned by the Crown Estate stayed in Wales, it would be of huge benefit to our local communities.

“The Liberal Democrats will continue to push Labour to change their mind on this issue as the Bill progresses through Parliament.”

Community

‘Collaborative effort’ to tackle fly-grazing but horses still on the loose

Published

33 mins ago

January 8, 2025

Tom Sinclair

TRAFFIC was disrupted yesterday (Jan 7) after multiple loose horses were spotted on Lower Lamphey Road, Pembroke. Motorists and pedestrians were urged to approach the area with caution as the horses roamed freely on the road and nearby residential areas, causing delays and raising safety concerns.

Pembrokeshire County Council recently announced that it has teamed up with Dyfed-Powys Police to tackle the growing problem of horses being left on public land and highways, known as fly-grazing.

The move comes after a significant rise in incidents across the county, causing safety concerns and public disruption.

Over the Christmas period, both agencies will work collaboratively in an operational effort to address the issue.

This joint approach responds to ongoing community concerns and forms part of a wider initiative to enable partner agencies to deal more effectively with fly-grazing.

The situation comes just days after authorities announced their initiative to tackle the issue through a coordinated approach, highlighting the urgency and importance of addressing fly-grazing concerns.

Members of the public are encouraged to report any concerns about fly-grazing by contacting [email protected] or calling 01437 764551.

Business

Land purchase opens door to new West Wales homes

Published

43 mins ago

January 8, 2025

Tom Sinclair

A MAJOR developer has purchased land in Saundersfoot, clearing the way for it to bring new homes to the town.

Persimmon Homes West Wales secured planning permission to build 72 new, high-quality homes at Sandy Hill in the popular Pembrokeshire town back in July.

This agreement means all the pieces are in place for the builder to start works on site, with a view to having their first properties on the market this summer.

The scheme includes a mix of quality new one to four-bed detached and semi-detached homes as well as terraced houses and apartments that will help meet local housing needs and open the door to home ownership for more local families. The properties will be finished in render and stone.

Boasting a number of proposed community benefits, the development will bring a range of facilities to the local community, including an equipped play area at the heart of the site, contributions to highway and active travel upgrades, and a dedicated active travel link that connects the site back to Sandy Hill Road.

The design also incorporates a sustainable drainage system with bio-retention areas and rain gardens, green technologies such as solar panels and electric vehicle charging points, as well as ecological enhancements to mitigate impacts on dormouse habitats and preserve existing trees and hedgerows.

As part of the housebuilder’s community contribution, Persimmon will also transfer 35% of the homes (25 in total) to a local housing provider for rent and shared ownership to help alleviate pressure on Pembrokeshire’s housing list.

The five-star developer donates £48,000 across Wales each year to good causes and much-valued organisations as part of its Community Champions initiative. Recent local recipients include Saundersfoot Cricket Club, Saundersfoot Rotary Club’s Tenderfoot programme, and the 2025 Saundersfoot New Year’s Swim.

Welcoming the agreement, Persimmon Homes West Wales’ Managing Director, Stuart Phillips, said:

“We are delighted to have cleared this final hurdle that now means we can commence works at Sandy Hill to deliver much-needed new, high-quality homes to Saundersfoot.

“Persimmon is determined to leave a positive and lasting legacy where we build and we look forward to working with the local community and its leaders as we bring forward these new homes.

“I want to give my thanks to everyone involved in the Persimmon team as well as the local planning authority for all the work they’ve put in to get to this point.”