Review into paedophile head ‘might not be enough’ – councillor

The concerns raised were emailed to Gwynedd Council’s then head of education Garem Jackson, a role he left for personal reasons shortly after Foden’s arrest last September.

He told the court he had passed them to a safeguarding officer but was told, as no specific allegations had been made, that no formal investigation would take place.

Instead he was instructed to speak to Foden on the phone, reminding him to “keep an appropriate distance” from young people.

He explained that Foden told him the concerns were “over-dramatic” and assured him there was nothing going on.

He told the court no written record was made of these exchanges.

At Foden’s trial, the judge criticised the council’s failure to investigate, calling it “very concerning”.

“I take his words with the utmost seriousness,” said Beca Brown.

“I accept that the magnifying glass is going to be everywhere – it needs to be.

“There’s nothing more important than getting to the bottom of what’s happened here,” she added, praising the victims “determination” and “resilience” in giving their evidence in court.

In a statement Garem Jackson called safeguarding a “key priority” for him as head of education.

“In rare circumstances where concerns were raised directly with me I reported them to the appropriate officer whose advice I followed,” he said, adding that he would cooperate fully with the independent review.

The child practice review is expected to take around six months before being submitted to the Welsh government.