The Chief Executive Officer of Cyngor Gwynedd council, Dilwyn Williams, has announced he is to retire at the end of this month.
Dilwyn O Williams was appointed CEO in 2014, replacing Harry Thomas who had been in position since 2003.
Like
Thomas, Mr Williams had worked for the council for many years, before
the creation of the new unitary Gwynedd council and abolishment of the
previous authority after the North Wales Child Abuse scandal and
boundary changes.
The reign of Harry Thomas ended under a cloud with 'angry council workers will walk out of their jobs in protest after
bosses were awarded pay rises of thousands of pounds while theirs were
frozen...'
From 2013 -https://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/local-news/angry-council-workers-walk-out-2503378
"Assets and customer care director Dilwyn Williams, education, skills
and regeneration director Iwan Trefor Jones and planning and public
protection director Dafydd Lewis had rises of £5,839 to £88,960.
Increases
for 11 heads of service ranged from £1,042 to £5,094. For example the
heads of social services and education saw their salaries rise by £3,311
from £72,200 to £75,511. The decision was taken by the council in June
but staff say they weren’t told."
Dilwyn started off as a
clerk for the former Caernarfon Council, then became Head of Accountancy
for the new authority, then Strategic Resources Director, Corporate
Director and finally CEO, where he has held the position for the last
seven years.
His tenure as CEO began when the Westminster government austerity cuts really began to bite.
Some
in the council have praised his work over the period, making £millions
of cuts to vital services and jobs, the closing of community schools and
youth clubs, the increasing Council Tax rises. Less services for even
more money. This in the main under the dictates of the westminster
government and the austerity measures first imposed by Cameron and
Osbourne.
Under his stewardship, serious failings with the
council have been highlighted in many reports, including five Ombudsman
for Wales investigations. These include breaches of Human Rights,
interference with the social services complaints process and so called
'independent' investigations, ignorance of Law, policy and procedures
and basically council officer's behaving very badly, indeed.
There have been data breaches, censoring of personal information, misrepresenting evidence, misinformation and fabrication.
There was the case of the social worker being suspended by Gwynedd
council for two and a half years until she won her Employment Tribunal.
More on that here -
https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/5cf61dd7e5274a0771578036/1600022.2017_Mr_S_Parry_v_Gwynedd_Council_-_CORRECTED_JUDGMENT_AND_REASONS.pdf
Then
there was the Employment Tribunal which found against the council for
their dismissal of two local teachers - “extraordinary”,
“ill-conceived”, and “emphatically wrong”.
More on that here - https://gwyneddsfailingcouncil.blogspot.com/2020/07/cyngor-gwynedd-council-extraordinary.html
Then along came the pandemic and a year of death, stress and change for all.
At
a national and a local level Wales did well with the first lockdown and
community spirit came to the fore. Some schools remained open to take
the children of 'key workers'. People and organisations all rallied
round and ensured medications were received and food parcels delivered
to those in need.
Cyngor Gwynedd council kept things very close to
their chests. Millions of pounds have been given out to local
businesses for support during the pandemic whilst Councillors have
complained of being left out of the decision making process -
https://www.dailypost.co.uk/news/north-wales-news/gwynedd-councillors-say-were-shut-18705757
'One member claimed there was a 'lack of trust' in the ruling cabinet group'
Then
came the issue of hotdesking and virtual locations and the Audit office
raising concerns with travel expenses -
https://www.dailypost.co.uk/news/north-wales-news/eyebrows-raised-what-schools-agency-18716183
'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.'
'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'
Then
there was the issue of the council's car pool when it was reported that
some officers were using the vehicles inappropriately, publicised by the
very obvious banner next to Morrison's supermarket in Caernarfon, that
was quickly taken down by the council.
A review of the council's
social services policies for those with Autism without a learning
disability has been released though not yet published. It mentions the
ring fenced monies that have been allocated for such services over the
years and calls for immediate actions.
Statutory annual reports
from some council departments are already late, with no dates announced
for completion nor opportunity to scrutinise what has been a truly
tumultous period.
At the time of Dilwyn's announcement to retire
the news came that a former colleague of his, Lucille Margaret Hughes,
had died. Miss Hughes was once the Director of Gwynedd social services
during the North Wales Child Abuse scandal and presided over the sacking
of a social worker who attempted to whistleblow the care home abuses.
Miss Hughes, also worked for CAIS and had been living in the grace and favour apartments at Penhyrn Castle for many years.
Cyngor Gwynedd Council Fail.: CEO Retires - What Next For Cyngor Gwynedd Council ?:
