Saturday, September 19, 2020
Saturday, September 12, 2020
Tuesday, September 08, 2020
Saturday, September 05, 2020
Cyngor Gwynedd Council Fail.: Silence From Unison And Unite Trade Unions. #BCUHB
With regard to the Robin #Holden report
into Institutional Abuse at #BCUHB dated 2013, snippets of the report
have appeared in the media informing of staff in tears and at the end of
their tether working in the North Wales NHS mental health units. Issues
of bullying are also said to be raised within the report.
The Information Commissioner had ordered
BCUHB to release the report but the Board have refused and are
appealing the ICO's decision. The Tribunal has a date of early 2021...
Local Trade Union branches in North Wales were recently approached for their
thoughts and reaction to the report by the North Wales Community Health Council into
Vascular services at BCUHB and in particular the worry of increased
limb loss amongst patients. The use of antibiotics was also raised as a
concern.
That report, dated 8th October, 2019, can be found here -
http://www.wales.nhs.uk/sitesplus/documents/900/Exec%20Minutes%2008102019%20%28APPROVED%29.pdf
It is a PDF document that will not open a new page but will be downloaded to your pc.
#Unison branches in the area were
reluctant to give any response, some did not even acknowledge the
question of if they were going to make a public statement on the damning
report.
The decision by the local union officers
to make no statement regarding the treatment of staff and the patients
within the health board has come as a surprise to many members,
especially after the shocking revelations now being made in the local
press.
Now I may have expected too much from Unison as I am not a member so I approached my own union, Unite.
An acknowledgment was received from the
BCU branch secretary and senior workplace rep, with regard to my
inquiry, excerpts of which are reproduced below -
...concerns come through the recent review of the
Board's Vascular Services and in particular claims of those in fear for
their careers if they speak out.
Have the Trade Unions had contact with the Board and
what has been the response from senior managers within the organisation
- if any ?
There is also the issue of the Board discharging
1700 mental health patients from their services and the LA's having to
pick up the pieces - during the lockdown.
The senior workplace rep, duly responded
and on the 2nd June, said that they would be discussing with the
regional officers and get back to me.
By early August, there had been no
further response. I then came across a discussion on Twitter involving
the Holden report and tagged both local Unison and Unite accounts into
the thread hoping one would join in the conversation.
further response. I then came across a discussion on Twitter involving
the Holden report and tagged both local Unison and Unite accounts into
the thread hoping one would join in the conversation.
Whilst Unison did not respond - Unite simply blocked me...
The Unite rep did eventually get back to me via Facebook -
"As you are not a
member of the BCU branch and you are not an employee of BCUHB I can’t
provide you with that information im afraid. If you require
information you will need to address your concerns to the Regional
Secretary Peter Hughes at the Cardiff Office."
Any union members that have concerns
regarding work practices or whistleblowing in BCUHB may be better
informing the regional organisers outside of the BCUHB region. The same goes for any Unison or Unite members within the local government organisations of North Wales.
The Unite rep did eventually get back to me via Facebook -
"As you are not a
member of the BCU branch and you are not an employee of BCUHB I can’t
provide you with that information im afraid. If you require
information you will need to address your concerns to the Regional
Secretary Peter Hughes at the Cardiff Office."
Any union members that have concerns
regarding work practices or whistleblowing in BCUHB may be better
informing the regional organisers outside of the BCUHB region. The same goes for any Unison or Unite members within the local government organisations of North Wales.
Something is very wrong within the local government organisations of North Wales.
Cyngor Gwynedd Council Fail.: Silence From Unison And Unite Trade Unions. #BCUHB:
Wednesday, September 02, 2020
Tuesday, September 01, 2020
Monday, August 31, 2020
Sunday, August 30, 2020
Protecting Whistleblowers Or Their Managers ? #BCUHB
A recent #QSE report from the Betsi
Cadwaladr University Health Board casts a little more light on the
debacle surrounding the Robin Holden report, completed in 2013 but still
not released by BCUHB, even after the recent Information Commissioner's
Office ruling to publish under the FOIA.
BCUHB have appealed this decision and a tribunal hearing is expected in early 2021.
The Quality, Safety & Experience report makes mention -
It is vital the Health Board is able to give confidence to its community and stakeholders that the recommendations from the Holden Report (2013) have been implemented and sustained. The Executive Medical Director and Executive Director of Nursing and Midwifery/Deputy CEO have commissioned work to validate that the recommendations have been implemented and remain in place at this current time...
...This work, due to the need to robustly validate the evidence, is aiming to be completed by the end of September for executive scrutiny and reporting to the QSE Committee at its next meeting in October 2020.
The
report, authored by Matthew Joyes, Acting Associate Director of
Quality Assurance who is also the Assistant Director of Patient Safety
and Experience at the health board is titled 'Holden Report - Update'
and is for the attention of Responsible Directors, in this case - David
Feanley, Executive Medical Director and Gill Harris, Executive Director
of Nursing and Midwifery/Deputy Chief Executive.
Bearing
in mind, the Holden report was completed 7 years ago, it is concerning
that only now 'responsible directors' are working towards ensuring that
Holden's 19 recommendations have been implemented and sustained within
the regions
Mental Health Units.
Or
is this ongoing work only now taking place to circumvent the ICO
tribunal next year by presenting 'evidence' that all is now well in the
mental health field and argue that the matter should be closed ?
The update states that the Executive
Director of Nursing and Patient Services made a personal visit to the
Hergest Mental Health Unit in July, 2013, in order to speak to a number
of staff who had raised concerns. A letter, dated 26th July, 2013,
confirmed the exact nature of the allegations made by staff, also
informing of a staff members petition of "No confidence in the Managment
of the Mental Health Clinical Programme Group in their dealings with
the Hergest Unit."
The claimed institutional abuse within
the BCUHB units, that included frail, elderly with dementia alongside
other mental health patients, not only affected patients but staff, too.
Who were the managers responsible for
the Mental Health Clinical Programme Group that failed so terribly ? Are
the actions of BCUHB only to protect the managers and not the
whistleblowers as claimed ?
Something is very wrong within the local government organisations of North Wales.
Cyngor Gwynedd Council Fail.: #BCUHB Protecting Whistleblowers Or Their Managers ?:
Cadwaladr University Health Board casts a little more light on the
debacle surrounding the Robin Holden report, completed in 2013 but still
not released by BCUHB, even after the recent Information Commissioner's
Office ruling to publish under the FOIA.
BCUHB have appealed this decision and a tribunal hearing is expected in early 2021.
The Quality, Safety & Experience report makes mention -
It is vital the Health Board is able to give confidence to its community and stakeholders that the recommendations from the Holden Report (2013) have been implemented and sustained. The Executive Medical Director and Executive Director of Nursing and Midwifery/Deputy CEO have commissioned work to validate that the recommendations have been implemented and remain in place at this current time...
...This work, due to the need to robustly validate the evidence, is aiming to be completed by the end of September for executive scrutiny and reporting to the QSE Committee at its next meeting in October 2020.
The
report, authored by Matthew Joyes, Acting Associate Director of
Quality Assurance who is also the Assistant Director of Patient Safety
and Experience at the health board is titled 'Holden Report - Update'
and is for the attention of Responsible Directors, in this case - David
Feanley, Executive Medical Director and Gill Harris, Executive Director
of Nursing and Midwifery/Deputy Chief Executive.
Bearing
in mind, the Holden report was completed 7 years ago, it is concerning
that only now 'responsible directors' are working towards ensuring that
Holden's 19 recommendations have been implemented and sustained within
the regions
Mental Health Units.
Or
is this ongoing work only now taking place to circumvent the ICO
tribunal next year by presenting 'evidence' that all is now well in the
mental health field and argue that the matter should be closed ?
The update states that the Executive
Director of Nursing and Patient Services made a personal visit to the
Hergest Mental Health Unit in July, 2013, in order to speak to a number
of staff who had raised concerns. A letter, dated 26th July, 2013,
confirmed the exact nature of the allegations made by staff, also
informing of a staff members petition of "No confidence in the Managment
of the Mental Health Clinical Programme Group in their dealings with
the Hergest Unit."
The claimed institutional abuse within
the BCUHB units, that included frail, elderly with dementia alongside
other mental health patients, not only affected patients but staff, too.
Who were the managers responsible for
the Mental Health Clinical Programme Group that failed so terribly ? Are
the actions of BCUHB only to protect the managers and not the
whistleblowers as claimed ?
Something is very wrong within the local government organisations of North Wales.
Cyngor Gwynedd Council Fail.: #BCUHB Protecting Whistleblowers Or Their Managers ?:
Thursday, August 27, 2020
Monday, August 24, 2020
Saturday, August 22, 2020
Friday, August 21, 2020
Cyngor Gwynedd Council Fail.: Rebuilding Communities - A Future For Gwynedd By L...
A recent article, by Branwen Jones, a community reporter, has the headline -
'Ban the sale of second homes or Welsh speaking communities face being
wiped out, councillor claims' amid calls for a two tier market to be
introduced in Gwynedd.
With nearly 40% of house sales bought as second homes last year, the
paper returns us to 1973 and an article written by Ann Clwyd, the ex
Labour MP, though makes no mention of Meibion
Glyndŵr, a group of activists who, during the 1980's and early 90's set
fire to over 200 English owned homes in the area and also letter bombed
the estate agents they considered profitering from the house sales.
Police reported finding a bomb in the
garden of a local actor - (neighbours spoke of seeing a stranger in the
garden the previous day) - and he was arrested and taken for questioning
to Dolgellau. Rumours of MI5 involvement in the case were denied. Whilst the actor was finally released, one man was eventually jailed.
Many in the area were supportive of Meibion
Glyndŵr, who saw the Welsh language being diluted and youngsters forced
out of the area to seek housing and employment, ironically, in England.
This was the time for local politicians and the council to act - they
did not and the opportunity of buying cheap housing to improve and rent
to locals was lost. It would be interesting to see the property
portfolio's of those whose job it was to serve the local communities,
back then and today.
Gwynedd Cabinet Member for Housing, Craig ab lago has said - "It doesn't matter how many homes we can build or how many empty ones we
bring back into active use, until we sort out the root issue what we're
doing is putting a sticking plaster over a gaping wound."
The Councillor is right. 'Build more homes' has been the loud
shout reverberating throughout Wales - mostly by those who can not think
further than their own profitable links with property developers and
the building industry. There is no need.
The idea of heavily taxing the
property of wealthy incomers more, while attractive to many is also a
non starter. Jersey is not a good example of how it could be done though
not without some merit it will simply alienate and divide people even
more.We must also remember that many locals have bought second homes as
an investment and those who use such property as a business.
Cyngor Gwynedd recently revealed there
are 1000 people on the housing list; coincidentally there are 1000
empty properties in the area. Let the council employ a small in-house
team of builders, plumbers, electricians, and carpenters, let them take
on local youth as apprentices, renovate the empty homes and rent them to
the apprentices who have been working on them. Then move on to the next
house, creating job security and affordable rental housing as it goes.
I do believe, Councillor, Craig
ab lago, has been working on such a program but progress will be too
slow without the council and its senior officers fully supporting him.
The scheme would eventually pay for
itself by the rental income and council tax raised on the properties
that are currently rotting and worthless. When the apprentices become
the masters, let them teach the new influx of apprentices. They will
eventually move on, hopefully start their own businesses and create opportunities for other local peiople.
Insulate these properties properly -
with the climate crisis in mind carbon neutral would be the goal or as
near as damn it. Llyr Gruffydd, Plaid Cymru shadow rural affairs
minister has been vocal with regard to Welsh wool being used as
insulation in homes to support the regions sheep farmers who have been
on their knees for years. Excellent. Use the wood from the regions
sustained forests and Welsh slate for the roofs, too. This would not
only support these businesses but massively reduce the carbon footprint
importing these products from abroad.
These homes would not be
available to buy and their tenancies would be linked to their employment
with the council. Creating jobs and security for the local youth in the
area. Once the program has started then renovate the houses for those
in need on the housing list.
So where will the money come from initially ?
UK governments have always provided
money for apprentice schemes so use those grants now while still
available. Other grants will also be available Across the North Wales
council's is a £2 Billion pension pot - much of which is invested
abroad. Why not invest that money in schemes supporting the region(s) ?
Ask for those in the community with
expertise and knowledge to come forward to pass on their skills to the
youth and the unemployed; stonemasons, engineers, metal workers, fishermen, computer coders
et al. The area is awash
with retirees and others who would be more than happy to volunteer
their time and knowledge as the recent covid19 crisis has shown.
Reopen the youth clubs and community
centres so these skills can be taught in the local communities by the
local community.These schemes run locally will not cost much and if
small amounts of monies are needed then dip into the council reserves.
Schemes such as these will also deal with the issue of gangs of bored,
youth roaming the town centres and estates. Dispersal notices are not
the answer as the reported attacks on police in Bangor have shown. These centres could also be used as a
focal point for all ages within the community - a meeting place for
music, sport and drama - as they used to be.
The effects of the Covid19 pandemic, on health and the economy, will be
with us for decades. Gwynedd, its people and the Welsh language could
thrive with the right leadership. The last forty years has shown where
mistakes were made - those lessons must be learnt otherwise they will
only be repeated.
Cyngor Gwynedd Council Fail.: Rebuilding Communities - A Future For Gwynedd By L...:
'Ban the sale of second homes or Welsh speaking communities face being
wiped out, councillor claims' amid calls for a two tier market to be
introduced in Gwynedd.
With nearly 40% of house sales bought as second homes last year, the
paper returns us to 1973 and an article written by Ann Clwyd, the ex
Labour MP, though makes no mention of Meibion
Glyndŵr, a group of activists who, during the 1980's and early 90's set
fire to over 200 English owned homes in the area and also letter bombed
the estate agents they considered profitering from the house sales.
Police reported finding a bomb in the
garden of a local actor - (neighbours spoke of seeing a stranger in the
garden the previous day) - and he was arrested and taken for questioning
to Dolgellau. Rumours of MI5 involvement in the case were denied. Whilst the actor was finally released, one man was eventually jailed.
Many in the area were supportive of Meibion
Glyndŵr, who saw the Welsh language being diluted and youngsters forced
out of the area to seek housing and employment, ironically, in England.
This was the time for local politicians and the council to act - they
did not and the opportunity of buying cheap housing to improve and rent
to locals was lost. It would be interesting to see the property
portfolio's of those whose job it was to serve the local communities,
back then and today.
Gwynedd Cabinet Member for Housing, Craig ab lago has said - "It doesn't matter how many homes we can build or how many empty ones we
bring back into active use, until we sort out the root issue what we're
doing is putting a sticking plaster over a gaping wound."
The Councillor is right. 'Build more homes' has been the loud
shout reverberating throughout Wales - mostly by those who can not think
further than their own profitable links with property developers and
the building industry. There is no need.
The idea of heavily taxing the
property of wealthy incomers more, while attractive to many is also a
non starter. Jersey is not a good example of how it could be done though
not without some merit it will simply alienate and divide people even
more.We must also remember that many locals have bought second homes as
an investment and those who use such property as a business.
Cyngor Gwynedd recently revealed there
are 1000 people on the housing list; coincidentally there are 1000
empty properties in the area. Let the council employ a small in-house
team of builders, plumbers, electricians, and carpenters, let them take
on local youth as apprentices, renovate the empty homes and rent them to
the apprentices who have been working on them. Then move on to the next
house, creating job security and affordable rental housing as it goes.
I do believe, Councillor, Craig
ab lago, has been working on such a program but progress will be too
slow without the council and its senior officers fully supporting him.
The scheme would eventually pay for
itself by the rental income and council tax raised on the properties
that are currently rotting and worthless. When the apprentices become
the masters, let them teach the new influx of apprentices. They will
eventually move on, hopefully start their own businesses and create opportunities for other local peiople.
Insulate these properties properly -
with the climate crisis in mind carbon neutral would be the goal or as
near as damn it. Llyr Gruffydd, Plaid Cymru shadow rural affairs
minister has been vocal with regard to Welsh wool being used as
insulation in homes to support the regions sheep farmers who have been
on their knees for years. Excellent. Use the wood from the regions
sustained forests and Welsh slate for the roofs, too. This would not
only support these businesses but massively reduce the carbon footprint
importing these products from abroad.
These homes would not be
available to buy and their tenancies would be linked to their employment
with the council. Creating jobs and security for the local youth in the
area. Once the program has started then renovate the houses for those
in need on the housing list.
So where will the money come from initially ?
UK governments have always provided
money for apprentice schemes so use those grants now while still
available. Other grants will also be available Across the North Wales
council's is a £2 Billion pension pot - much of which is invested
abroad. Why not invest that money in schemes supporting the region(s) ?
Ask for those in the community with
expertise and knowledge to come forward to pass on their skills to the
youth and the unemployed; stonemasons, engineers, metal workers, fishermen, computer coders
et al. The area is awash
with retirees and others who would be more than happy to volunteer
their time and knowledge as the recent covid19 crisis has shown.
Reopen the youth clubs and community
centres so these skills can be taught in the local communities by the
local community.These schemes run locally will not cost much and if
small amounts of monies are needed then dip into the council reserves.
Schemes such as these will also deal with the issue of gangs of bored,
youth roaming the town centres and estates. Dispersal notices are not
the answer as the reported attacks on police in Bangor have shown. These centres could also be used as a
focal point for all ages within the community - a meeting place for
music, sport and drama - as they used to be.
The effects of the Covid19 pandemic, on health and the economy, will be
with us for decades. Gwynedd, its people and the Welsh language could
thrive with the right leadership. The last forty years has shown where
mistakes were made - those lessons must be learnt otherwise they will
only be repeated.
Cyngor Gwynedd Council Fail.: Rebuilding Communities - A Future For Gwynedd By L...:
Tuesday, August 18, 2020
Thursday, August 13, 2020
#TawelFan And The #Hascas Report - #BCUHB
As we await the latest, taxpayer funded, shenanigans employed by BetsiCadwaladr University Health Board in their attempt to conceal the #Holden report into institutional abuse at the #Hergest mental health unit at Ysbyty Gwynedd, it may be useful to take a look at a more recent report into North Wales mental health units.
One such report is the - 'Independent Investigation into the Care and Treatment Provided on Tawel Fan Ward: a Lessons for Learning Report.'dated May,2018.
There appears to be a disconnect between part one of the report - excerpts in italics - and the report's final findings and conclusions reached. When the report was released, there were many vocal cries of a coverup and a whitewash.
The Investigation was commissioned initially to examine specific concerns raised by some 23 families about the care and treatment received by their loved ones between January 2007 and December 2013...... In order to identify any other patients whose care and treatment might have fallen below an acceptable standard the Investigation was also asked to examine the archives developed during the following prior processes:
The majority of witnesses who were called to give evidence cooperated freely with the Investigation; however a significant number (some 20 percent) did not.
At the inception of the Investigation it was thought that the archives of all prior inquiry and review processes were complete, available and ready for analysis; this was not the case. It took 14 months (from August 2015 to October 2016) for the complete North Wales Police archive to be made available to the Investigation.
There were also ongoing issues in accessing a complete set of formal concerns, incident and safeguarding documentation from both BCUHB and the Local Authorities. Some of this information was only made available to the Investigation as late as July 2017.
The Investigation Panel expected to source documentation from ‘locked down’ archives when the work commenced. At the inception of any NHS investigation there is a requirement that all pertinent documents are identified, recalled and secured; this is commonly known as the ‘lock down process’
...Continued security and monitored access is essential to make certain confidential documents are stored safely so that no suggestion of tampering with evidence can be made against either the organisation or an individual, during the course of an investigation, or at any point in the future.
The Investigation Panel was surprised to find that (initially) documents had not been formally ‘locked down’ in accordance with commonly accepted NHS good practice.
Ockenden External Investigation: a file of documents was provided to the Investigation by BCUHB. However on close examination the archive did not appear to be complete. This was resolved by establishing direct contact with Donna Ockenden and no further delays were incurred.
North Wales Police Investigation: the original archive given to the Investigation had been provided directly to BCUHB by the North Wales Police. The assumption was made by the Health Board that this archive contained copies of all statements provided by its staff together with those provided by the families of patients who had been admitted to Tawel Fan ward between January 2011 and December 2013; at this stage BCUHB thought the archive was complete.
On close examination it became evident to the Investigation Panel that this was not the case.
...During November 2015 discussions were held between the Investigation Chair and the North Wales Police to establish how many statements were missing from the archive given to BCUHB. There ensued a long process which entailed multiple discussions, meetings and written communications.
Eventually at the end of May 2016 the North Wales Police allowed members of the Investigation Panel (via a supervised read at the Police Head Quarters) access to a further 70 witness statements
As a result of this supervised read another 20 patients were identified where families had either clearly raised concerns about the care and treatment provided on Tawel Fan ward, or where material within the statements related to matters which the Investigators determined required further investigation despite no explicit or direct complaint about the matter having been made.
Investigation Panel members were permitted to take brief notes at the Police Headquarters and to list the new patient names. It was agreed by the North Wales Police that the Investigation could share these names with BCUHB so that a search could commence for their clinical records. The Police held a full list of family contact details which it was prepared to share with BCUHB directly.
At this stage, however, the Police wanted to gain the consent of each individual who had given a statement prior to any further information sharing taking place with the Health Board and prior to the additional 70 statements being added to the archive.
The Investigation Panel worked initially with the following departments and organisations to establish a credible witness management process to ensure that all future investigation work adhered to United Kingdom best practice:
BCUHB Workforce and Organisational Development Directorate
The Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC)
The Royal College of Nursing
The British Medical Association
UNISON
Part one of the report concludes with this worrying paragraph. My emphasis in bold.
The Investigation conducted its work in private and communicated headline findings to BCUHB only towards the end of the investigation process. During the course of the Investigation corporate members of the Trust Board were called as witnesses. The Independent Oversight Panel ensured quality monitoring processes were deployed and held at arm’s length from the Health Board. This guaranteed that the work was completed in a satisfactory manner whilst maintaining the total integrity of the Investigation’s independence. The Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board received the report after all due process was completed and was not permitted to exert any influence over the Investigation or the report findings and conclusions.
I have read and reread this statement several times and whilst I understand its inclusion its length and tone concerns me. Is there a history of BCUHB interference in investigations as other local government agencies in North Wales have done ?
My own experiences of 'independent' investigations in North Wales, where investigators are bullied and overwhelmed to alter critical reports, interference by senior managers in the process and staff that lie to cover for poor behaviour with the support of their managers leaves me sceptical of many reports published by local government and their agencies.
Would I trust the Hascas report ?
No - and it is my opinion that the reason BCUHB is fighting tooth and nail not to publish the Robin Holden report is because it will simply confirm the claims of some staff and witnesses to the alleged institutional abuse within the North Wales mental health units.
The link to the full report can be found here - HASCAS report, May 2018 (eng).pdf
The file is a PDF document and will be downloaded to your computer and not open as a new web page.
Cyngor Gwynedd Council Fail.: Tawel Fan And The Hascas Report - #BCUHB:
One such report is the - 'Independent Investigation into the Care and Treatment Provided on Tawel Fan Ward: a Lessons for Learning Report.'dated May,2018.
There appears to be a disconnect between part one of the report - excerpts in italics - and the report's final findings and conclusions reached. When the report was released, there were many vocal cries of a coverup and a whitewash.
The Investigation was commissioned initially to examine specific concerns raised by some 23 families about the care and treatment received by their loved ones between January 2007 and December 2013...... In order to identify any other patients whose care and treatment might have fallen below an acceptable standard the Investigation was also asked to examine the archives developed during the following prior processes:
The majority of witnesses who were called to give evidence cooperated freely with the Investigation; however a significant number (some 20 percent) did not.
At the inception of the Investigation it was thought that the archives of all prior inquiry and review processes were complete, available and ready for analysis; this was not the case. It took 14 months (from August 2015 to October 2016) for the complete North Wales Police archive to be made available to the Investigation.
There were also ongoing issues in accessing a complete set of formal concerns, incident and safeguarding documentation from both BCUHB and the Local Authorities. Some of this information was only made available to the Investigation as late as July 2017.
The Investigation Panel expected to source documentation from ‘locked down’ archives when the work commenced. At the inception of any NHS investigation there is a requirement that all pertinent documents are identified, recalled and secured; this is commonly known as the ‘lock down process’
...Continued security and monitored access is essential to make certain confidential documents are stored safely so that no suggestion of tampering with evidence can be made against either the organisation or an individual, during the course of an investigation, or at any point in the future.
The Investigation Panel was surprised to find that (initially) documents had not been formally ‘locked down’ in accordance with commonly accepted NHS good practice.
Ockenden External Investigation: a file of documents was provided to the Investigation by BCUHB. However on close examination the archive did not appear to be complete. This was resolved by establishing direct contact with Donna Ockenden and no further delays were incurred.
North Wales Police Investigation: the original archive given to the Investigation had been provided directly to BCUHB by the North Wales Police. The assumption was made by the Health Board that this archive contained copies of all statements provided by its staff together with those provided by the families of patients who had been admitted to Tawel Fan ward between January 2011 and December 2013; at this stage BCUHB thought the archive was complete.
On close examination it became evident to the Investigation Panel that this was not the case.
...During November 2015 discussions were held between the Investigation Chair and the North Wales Police to establish how many statements were missing from the archive given to BCUHB. There ensued a long process which entailed multiple discussions, meetings and written communications.
Eventually at the end of May 2016 the North Wales Police allowed members of the Investigation Panel (via a supervised read at the Police Head Quarters) access to a further 70 witness statements
As a result of this supervised read another 20 patients were identified where families had either clearly raised concerns about the care and treatment provided on Tawel Fan ward, or where material within the statements related to matters which the Investigators determined required further investigation despite no explicit or direct complaint about the matter having been made.
Investigation Panel members were permitted to take brief notes at the Police Headquarters and to list the new patient names. It was agreed by the North Wales Police that the Investigation could share these names with BCUHB so that a search could commence for their clinical records. The Police held a full list of family contact details which it was prepared to share with BCUHB directly.
At this stage, however, the Police wanted to gain the consent of each individual who had given a statement prior to any further information sharing taking place with the Health Board and prior to the additional 70 statements being added to the archive.
The Investigation Panel worked initially with the following departments and organisations to establish a credible witness management process to ensure that all future investigation work adhered to United Kingdom best practice:
BCUHB Workforce and Organisational Development Directorate
The Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC)
The Royal College of Nursing
The British Medical Association
UNISON
Part one of the report concludes with this worrying paragraph. My emphasis in bold.
The Investigation conducted its work in private and communicated headline findings to BCUHB only towards the end of the investigation process. During the course of the Investigation corporate members of the Trust Board were called as witnesses. The Independent Oversight Panel ensured quality monitoring processes were deployed and held at arm’s length from the Health Board. This guaranteed that the work was completed in a satisfactory manner whilst maintaining the total integrity of the Investigation’s independence. The Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board received the report after all due process was completed and was not permitted to exert any influence over the Investigation or the report findings and conclusions.
I have read and reread this statement several times and whilst I understand its inclusion its length and tone concerns me. Is there a history of BCUHB interference in investigations as other local government agencies in North Wales have done ?
My own experiences of 'independent' investigations in North Wales, where investigators are bullied and overwhelmed to alter critical reports, interference by senior managers in the process and staff that lie to cover for poor behaviour with the support of their managers leaves me sceptical of many reports published by local government and their agencies.
Would I trust the Hascas report ?
No - and it is my opinion that the reason BCUHB is fighting tooth and nail not to publish the Robin Holden report is because it will simply confirm the claims of some staff and witnesses to the alleged institutional abuse within the North Wales mental health units.
The link to the full report can be found here - HASCAS report, May 2018 (eng).pdf
The file is a PDF document and will be downloaded to your computer and not open as a new web page.
Cyngor Gwynedd Council Fail.: Tawel Fan And The Hascas Report - #BCUHB:
Sunday, August 09, 2020
Saturday, August 08, 2020
Friday, August 07, 2020
Thursday, August 06, 2020
Cyngor Gwynedd Council : Hotdesking And Virtual Locations In Gwynedd.
Another article written by Gwynedd and Anglesey Local Democracy Reporter, Gareth Wyn-Williams has certainly raised eyebrows in North Wales.
From the excellent article which can be found here -
https://www.dailypost.co.uk/news/north-wales-news/eyebrows-raised-what-schools-agency-18716183
Copy and paste the web address into your browser.
Auditors say they can't rule out that a school improvement service allowed its staff to change which offices they worked from so they could boost their mileage expenses claims.
GwE changed its policies at the same time that rules were tightened up for council workers. The new
rules meant staff would only be able to claim for distances beyond that which they would normally travel to get from home to work.
When the changes came in, GwE allowed staff to choose that the office nearest to their homes should be their official workplace.
That meant that the point at which they could begin claiming mileage expenses was lowered.
While the council's decision to change the rules was aimed at saving around £290,000 a year, #GwE - which is funded by North Wales authorities - saw its expenditure increase between 2017 and 2019.
The audit report states: "A number of staff had wished to change their official work location to the nearest offices to their homes.
"The fact that this may have happened in response to the change in policy and the effect this has on officers' travel costs, rather than for practical reasons for GwE, cannot be ruled out.
"This is based on the fact that officers’ travel claims suggest that there has been no change to their day to day working arrangements, but the changes have obviously impacted on officers' travel costs by reducing the element they have to subtract from their claims, as well as enabling officers to claim for travel beyond their new, official location."
An audit also found that mileage claims were not being checked properly, leading to one instance where an 800 mile claim submitted for an 80 mile journey was processed before the mistake was found.
Noting that the nature of their work meant that GwE staff had to regularly visit schools or to the various offices across North Wales, it added: "Among the discussions to change official work locations, it was discovered that GwE had tried to move some staff to ‘virtual’ locations, as they
did not have offices in the locations staff wanted to move to.
"Nearby hotdesking facilities were eventually used as an official place of work as a physical location is required for the system.
"Again this has the effect of enabling the officer to claim travel expenses (and time, if relevant to the terms of the job) for any journey that exceeds the distance from home to this official place of work."
The report concluded: "Whilst reviewing officers' travel claims, it appears that those who have changed their official work location have benefited financially, whether by claiming for the journeys they make to their usual place of work, or by reducing the loss associated with the distance from home to their official work location - or a combination of both.
"GwE's Value for Money Policy states that 'although internal audit has a primary responsibility for assessing the internal control system, the internal auditors are frequently well placed to
assess and comment on VFM in the areas reviewed'.
"To this end, Internal Audit cannot provide assurance that value for money has been taken into account when changing work locations."
Responding to the report during Thursday's committee meeting, Cllr Paul Rowlinson suggested: "To me the main failing is the revelation that staff are allowed to choose their official place of work and that some may do that, not to fairly reflect where they truly work but to boost the amount they are permitted to claim back.
"Are they paying income tax on that? And if this is happening on a wide basis then it raises concerns over the culture and reminds me of the issue surrounding Parliamentary expenses in 2009, which may have been within the law but didn't look right to people looking in from the outside."
A council officer also conceded that it could be seen as "odd" that GwE
amended many staff's official workplaces on the same day that Gwynedd's stricter guidelines were introduced, adding that the authority's HR department had attempted to challenge GwE on the decision.
In response, a GwE spokesperson said: "In reviewing the policy change regarding travel costs GwE worked closely with the relevant officers at Gwynedd council and the Directors of Education of the six Authorities across North Wales to secure agreement that the regional service remained effective and efficient and embed the policy change in a regional context.
"Following the policy change GwE staff are not claiming travel costs from their homes."
A Cyngor Gwynedd spokesperson added that while concern had been raised that some managers at GwE were not, at the time of the audit, consistently checking the reasonableness and accuracy of mileage claims by GwE staff, management had since agreed to implement these steps.
https://www.dailypost.co.uk/news/north-wales-news/eyebrows-raised-what-schools-agency-18716183
Article ends.
As Gwynedd Council is the leading council in respect of the finance and accountancy service for the Joint Committee, it is Gwynedd Council’s responsibility to complete the financial statements.
Gwynedd Council has been appointed as host authority in implementing and maintaining the service, and the Joint Committee of all the partners oversees the management of the service.
The accounts for the GwE Joint Committee from 2013/14 to the present date can be found here -
https://www.gwynedd.llyw.cymru/en/Council/Performance-and-spending/Budgets-and-finance/Statement-of-Accounts/GwE-Joint-Committee.aspx
Is this fraud ?
The Audit and Governance Committee webcast in relation to GwE and other matters can be found here along with the agenda packs that include the reports -
https://gwynedd.public-i.tv/core/portal/webcast_interactive/502648
The sidenote alongside the webcast that informs 'An agenda has not been published for this meeting.' is not correct.
For those interested the agenda pack and relevant reports can be found here -
https://democracy.gwynedd.llyw.cymru/ieListDocuments.aspx?CId=136&MId=4129&Ver=4
Cyngor Gwynedd Council Fail.: 'Virtual' Locations And 'Hotdesking' In Gwynedd An...:
From the excellent article which can be found here -
https://www.dailypost.co.uk/news/north-wales-news/eyebrows-raised-what-schools-agency-18716183
Copy and paste the web address into your browser.
Auditors say they can't rule out that a school improvement service allowed its staff to change which offices they worked from so they could boost their mileage expenses claims.
GwE changed its policies at the same time that rules were tightened up for council workers. The new
rules meant staff would only be able to claim for distances beyond that which they would normally travel to get from home to work.
When the changes came in, GwE allowed staff to choose that the office nearest to their homes should be their official workplace.
That meant that the point at which they could begin claiming mileage expenses was lowered.
While the council's decision to change the rules was aimed at saving around £290,000 a year, #GwE - which is funded by North Wales authorities - saw its expenditure increase between 2017 and 2019.
The audit report states: "A number of staff had wished to change their official work location to the nearest offices to their homes.
"The fact that this may have happened in response to the change in policy and the effect this has on officers' travel costs, rather than for practical reasons for GwE, cannot be ruled out.
"This is based on the fact that officers’ travel claims suggest that there has been no change to their day to day working arrangements, but the changes have obviously impacted on officers' travel costs by reducing the element they have to subtract from their claims, as well as enabling officers to claim for travel beyond their new, official location."
An audit also found that mileage claims were not being checked properly, leading to one instance where an 800 mile claim submitted for an 80 mile journey was processed before the mistake was found.
Noting that the nature of their work meant that GwE staff had to regularly visit schools or to the various offices across North Wales, it added: "Among the discussions to change official work locations, it was discovered that GwE had tried to move some staff to ‘virtual’ locations, as they
did not have offices in the locations staff wanted to move to.
"Nearby hotdesking facilities were eventually used as an official place of work as a physical location is required for the system.
"Again this has the effect of enabling the officer to claim travel expenses (and time, if relevant to the terms of the job) for any journey that exceeds the distance from home to this official place of work."
The report concluded: "Whilst reviewing officers' travel claims, it appears that those who have changed their official work location have benefited financially, whether by claiming for the journeys they make to their usual place of work, or by reducing the loss associated with the distance from home to their official work location - or a combination of both.
"GwE's Value for Money Policy states that 'although internal audit has a primary responsibility for assessing the internal control system, the internal auditors are frequently well placed to
assess and comment on VFM in the areas reviewed'.
"To this end, Internal Audit cannot provide assurance that value for money has been taken into account when changing work locations."
Responding to the report during Thursday's committee meeting, Cllr Paul Rowlinson suggested: "To me the main failing is the revelation that staff are allowed to choose their official place of work and that some may do that, not to fairly reflect where they truly work but to boost the amount they are permitted to claim back.
"Are they paying income tax on that? And if this is happening on a wide basis then it raises concerns over the culture and reminds me of the issue surrounding Parliamentary expenses in 2009, which may have been within the law but didn't look right to people looking in from the outside."
A council officer also conceded that it could be seen as "odd" that GwE
amended many staff's official workplaces on the same day that Gwynedd's stricter guidelines were introduced, adding that the authority's HR department had attempted to challenge GwE on the decision.
In response, a GwE spokesperson said: "In reviewing the policy change regarding travel costs GwE worked closely with the relevant officers at Gwynedd council and the Directors of Education of the six Authorities across North Wales to secure agreement that the regional service remained effective and efficient and embed the policy change in a regional context.
"Following the policy change GwE staff are not claiming travel costs from their homes."
A Cyngor Gwynedd spokesperson added that while concern had been raised that some managers at GwE were not, at the time of the audit, consistently checking the reasonableness and accuracy of mileage claims by GwE staff, management had since agreed to implement these steps.
https://www.dailypost.co.uk/news/north-wales-news/eyebrows-raised-what-schools-agency-18716183
Article ends.
As Gwynedd Council is the leading council in respect of the finance and accountancy service for the Joint Committee, it is Gwynedd Council’s responsibility to complete the financial statements.
Gwynedd Council has been appointed as host authority in implementing and maintaining the service, and the Joint Committee of all the partners oversees the management of the service.
The accounts for the GwE Joint Committee from 2013/14 to the present date can be found here -
https://www.gwynedd.llyw.cymru/en/Council/Performance-and-spending/Budgets-and-finance/Statement-of-Accounts/GwE-Joint-Committee.aspx
Is this fraud ?
The Audit and Governance Committee webcast in relation to GwE and other matters can be found here along with the agenda packs that include the reports -
https://gwynedd.public-i.tv/core/portal/webcast_interactive/502648
The sidenote alongside the webcast that informs 'An agenda has not been published for this meeting.' is not correct.
For those interested the agenda pack and relevant reports can be found here -
https://democracy.gwynedd.llyw.cymru/ieListDocuments.aspx?CId=136&MId=4129&Ver=4
Cyngor Gwynedd Council Fail.: 'Virtual' Locations And 'Hotdesking' In Gwynedd An...:
Wednesday, August 05, 2020
Tuesday, August 04, 2020
Sunday, August 02, 2020
Friday, July 31, 2020
Tuesday, July 28, 2020
Sunday, July 26, 2020
Friday, July 24, 2020
Wednesday, July 22, 2020
Tuesday, July 21, 2020
Sunday, July 19, 2020
Friday, July 17, 2020
Thursday, July 16, 2020
Saturday, July 11, 2020
Friday, July 10, 2020
Thursday, July 09, 2020
Chris Hatton's blog: COVID-19 deaths of people with learning disabiliti...
- This
blogpost updates information on the number of people with learning
disabilities in England who have died of COVID-19, up to 30th June 2020.
- At least 620 people with learning disabilities have died of COVID-19 in England.
- The
number of people with learning disabilities dying of COVID-19 is now
around 5 people every week. For two weeks in April it was over 100
people every week.
- People with learning disabilities might still be more likely to die of COVID-19 than other people.
Because
I haven't provided updates on the weekly information about the deaths
of people with learning disabilities from COVID-19 since this long blogpost, this post is just a quick update of the numbers with little commentary. An excellent easyread summary of the information on COVID-19 deaths and people with learning disabilities has been produced by Bradford Talking Media (BTM).
I haven't provided updates on the weekly information about the deaths
of people with learning disabilities from COVID-19 since this long blogpost, this post is just a quick update of the numbers with little commentary. An excellent easyread summary of the information on COVID-19 deaths and people with learning disabilities has been produced by Bradford Talking Media (BTM).
The graph below shows weekly information from the LeDeR programme,
which is likely to be the best source of information we have on the
deaths of people with learning disabilities in England (although it is
unlikely to be complete). The red columns show the number of people who
have died of suspected or confirmed COVID-19, and the blue columns show
the number of people who have died of other causes.
which is likely to be the best source of information we have on the
deaths of people with learning disabilities in England (although it is
unlikely to be complete). The red columns show the number of people who
have died of suspected or confirmed COVID-19, and the blue columns show
the number of people who have died of other causes.
More -
Chris Hatton's blog: COVID-19 deaths of people with learning disabiliti...:
Wednesday, July 08, 2020
Tuesday, July 07, 2020
Sunday, July 05, 2020
Saturday, July 04, 2020
Friday, July 03, 2020
Thursday, July 02, 2020
Wednesday, July 01, 2020
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