There were more than 50 “missed opportunities” to intervene and stop a school head teacher who was able to sexually abuse girls for years, a report has found.
A Child Practice Review (CPR), led by prominent expert Jan Pickles, has looked into the crimes of 68-year-old Neil Foden, from Conwy county in north Wales, who was jailed for 17 years after being convicted of 19 charges involving four girls.
The review, external said Foden was a “prolific sex offender who harmed many children”.
The leader of Cyngor Gwynedd council said the authority took responsibility for the mistakes and missed opportunities to stop Foden and apologised “to all those who have suffered”.
A total of 52 concerns about safeguarding and other issues were found to have been raised and not acted on by Cyngor Gwynedd and other agencies as early as 2018, continuing until his arrest in 2023.
The “ambitious” recommendations the report makes are “designed to bring about the most significant change in safeguarding in schools in Wales in a generation,” Ms Pickles said.
She said the name of the review, Our Bravery Brought Justice, was chosen by one of the victims, and it was “now our duty as adults, professionals, politicians to rise to their challenge” and prevent similar abuse from happening again.
The review was unique in its size and scale, analysing 10 times the volume of information that is usually looked at in a CPR, and took more than a year to complete.
It also highlights an historical allegation dating back to 1979, not long after Foden qualified as a teacher.
The review compared the failings in safeguarding it found in the Foden case to the Clywch Inquiry, which was published into the crimes of paedophile teacher and author John Owen at Ysgol Gyfun Rhydfelen in Pontypridd more than 20 years ago.
It said it was “appalling” that the same issues identified in that inquiry, about failures to follow recommendations about monitoring staff conduct and safeguarding policies persisted today.
The review called for a national strategy to ensure consistent safeguarding education and oversight across Wales.
It also makes a number of recommendations, which Jan Pickles said were “informed with the insight of the young people who were harmed”.
These include updated guidance on handling allegations against school staff to be drawn up, and agencies told they must work together consistently.
Nia Jeffreys, leader of Cyngor Gwynedd, said: “We are saddened by the details that have been highlighted by the independent reviewers and we take responsibility for the mistakes and missed opportunities to stop Neil Foden.
“On behalf of the council, I apologise to all those who have suffered and pay tribute to their courage and strength.”
A statement from Ysgol Friars said: “As a school, we will never lose sight of the horrific crimes that were committed, or the strength of those who stood up and spoke out.”
It added school leaders “remain committed to learning from this disaster”.
Assistant Chief Constable Gareth Evans from North Wales Police said the force recognised “there were missed opportunities to safeguard these young people through the multi-agency safeguarding response and we apologise for this”.
The report can be found HERE
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