Public Protection in Kidwelly

CARMARTHENSHIRE’S executive board member for environmental and public protection has praised council officers for their successful work in the Kidwelly area.

Cllr Jim Jones said he was impressed with the wide range of enforcement work carried out for the benefit of residents – with officers often able to sort out problems without having to resort to court action.

The Trading Standards Service has had a major success in helping a vulnerable client with loan debts.

A complaint was received from a social worker on behalf of a client. The social worker was concerned about the activities of a loan company which was supplying credit to her client.

The investigation revealed that the client had six active loans supplied by the same company, that there were issues over the frequency of loans supplied, with three separate loans taken out on the same day, that transactions and agreements were allegedly signed by the consumer in her local supermarket car park, high interest rates such as a £200 loan repaid over 50 weeks with £150 interest, and the fact that the consumer was extremely vulnerable.

Trading Standards Service Manager Roger Edmunds said: “The client owed a total of £3,140, which via our intervention and collaborative assistance from Social Services has now been wiped.

“We considered that the loans should not have been supplied to the consumer due to her vulnerability. We were of the opinion that there were potential breaches of the Consumer Credit Act 2006 and the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008.”

The Service’s work in the Kidwelly area has also included test purchasing exercises to prevent sales of alcohol to under age children.

Trading Standards Service officers used under age youngsters to attempt under age purchases of alcohol and there were no sales.

Officers have also been working to ensure that licensed premises comply with their premises license, and that they are working within the law.

This year so far, from 1st April 1 2012, the Kidwelly ward has not generated a high number of noise related cases (only six have been received). This would suggest that other proactive areas of work relating in particular to the night time economy have been effective in preventing disturbances.

The Public Health Team have been involved in over 20 cases in the Kidwelly area, from waste accumulations to smoke nuisance complaints. All have been resolved without the need for formal action.

The ward is also patrolled proactively by the dog warden service, and Kidwelly town is on the list for promotional dog chipping events to be held in the next few months. This service is free for residents in Carmarthenshire.

Animal Health Officers have carried out a range of work in the Kidwelly area including an ongoing prosecution relating to the welfare of farm animals, a formal caution relating to unpassported horses, and an improvement notice issued to a person keeping dogs in unacceptable conditions, along with a notice to remove animal by-products.

Two premises have been investigated for unlicensed dog breeding, and both are currently working to improve facilities with a view to becoming licensed.

There are three instances of working with other council departments and the Town Council to erect signs resulting in the removal of straying horses.

Cllr Jim Jones said: “There is a lot more to the enforcement role of our officers than successful prosecutions although these are important in dealing with issues and deterring others.

“Our greatest successes come from preventing problems in the first place or dealing with them quickly before there is a need to take enforcement action. I am very impressed with the wide range of work being carried out by our officers to protect the wellbeing of the residents of Kidwelly and the surrounding area.”