PARENTS and carers of children at the Bangor school which convicted paedophile Neil Foden was headteacher of have been invited to contribute to a Child Practice Review (CPR).

Foden, 67, who was head of Ysgol Friars, was jailed for 17 years in July, after he was convicted in May of 19 sexual offences involving four child victims between 2019 and 2023.

Following the conclusion of criminal proceedings, the North Wales Safeguarding Board commissioned the CPR, with Jan Pickles OBE appointed as its independent chair.

Ms Pickles has now written to all parents and carers of pupils at Ysgol Friars regarding the progress that has been made since the CPR started in August.

She is a registered social worker who has worked with the probation service, police and the NSPCC, and has been a National Independent Safeguarding Board Wales member.

Extracts from an email, shown to the Chronicle, read: “The CPR aims to identify any steps that can be taken by the safeguarding board partners (police, local authority, health or other bodies) to achieve improvements in multi-agency child protection practice.

“I work alongside two reviewers who both have significant experience in education and child protection.

“We are independent and have no local connection professionally or personally. We have not worked previously for any of the agencies involved.

“In the initial stages of the CPR, we have been collecting information from many sources, spending time in the school and interviewing those that worked with Neil Foden.

“We would now welcome your involvement. As we have a fluent Welsh speaker on the team, please do contact us in your language of choice.

“If you feel you could contribute to the CPR or have other information to share, please contact the review team at reviews@denbighshire.gov.uk.

“I wish to assure you that your information will be treated in the strictest confidence. We will only breach this confidence if we believe a child or adult with care and support needs is currently at risk of harm.

“Within the review, you will not be identified. We will refer to you as a ‘parent or carer’ - this is to ensure all feel able to speak up.”

Gwynedd Council said it is co-operating “fully” with the CPR.

Last week, two current members of staff at Ysgol Friars, who have not been publicly named, were suspended, while Margaret Davies is due to take charge as interim head from Easter 2025 to the summer of 2026.

North Wales Police confirmed earlier in November that it has begun investigating two further allegations made against Foden, meanwhile.