Are you sure about this lovely ladies?

Driving instructor banned after using "crude and lewd" language during lessons with teen girls

By South Wales Evening Post  |  Posted: November 10, 2016

By Wales News Service
 

A driving instructor has been banned for swearing while giving lessons to three teenage girls.

Michael Poole, 48, repeatedly swore using "crude and lewd" language while the girls, aged 17 and 18, were at the wheel of his car.

The learners told Gwent police how former soldier Poole repeatedly used the "F-word" while giving lessons with his Ddraig Goch School of Motoring in Pontypool.

Poole has now been struck off the official driving instructors register after being convicted of using "abusive, threatening and insulting language."

Victim Lauren Baddeley, 18, told how Poole was "crude from the offset" of her £25-an-hour lessons.


Lauren said: "It made me feel uncomfortable when he was talking about himself but I tried to brush that off.

"You get used to it but it progressively got worse towards the end and struck me that really this wasn't right."

Student Lauren, of Cwmbran, Gwent, went to police - and officers also spoke to two other learners, aged 18 and 17, about his stream of foul language.

Poole, of Pontypool, Gwent, was charged with three counts of using threatening, abusive, insulting words, or behaviour to cause harassment, alarm or distress after incidents.


Poole - who ran Ddraig Goch School of Motoring - denied the allegations but was found guilty after trial at Newport Crown Court. He was jailed for 18 weeks.

READ MORE: Swansea pub boss who took on Sky and Premier League over foreign decoder box has appeal dismissed

He has now been struck off the approved list of driving instructors by the DVSA.

Th mother of one of the girls praised her daughter for raising the alarm. She refused to repeat the foul language but was "very relieved" at his punishment.

She said: "I was absolutely mortified at what that man was saying to young girls he was teaching.

"My daughter was 17-years-old - they weren't adults.

"To hear those type of comments coming from a teacher, someone who you look up to, it made her feel sick."

READ MORE: Pregnant mum assaulted by another parent over a Facebook post

According to the Ddraig Goch School of Motoring website, Poole had been a driving instructor since retiring from the army in June 2012 after 24 years of service.

DVSA registrar Mark Magee said: "We take the safety of learner drivers very seriously and our thoughts are with the victims of Mr Poole's criminal behaviour.

"We are committed to protecting learner drivers and will thoroughly investigate complaints, involving the police where necessary.

"All driving instructors are subject to criminal record checks, and if convicted of an offence, can be removed from DVSA's register."

Some of these are dog ruff

Single people with pets now have a Swansea dating group set up just for them

By South Wales Evening Post  |  Posted: November 10, 2016

SINGLE white male with energetic goldfish would like to meet single woman with inquisitive cat.

For some, it would be a recipe for disaster but such a lonely heart could, in theory, feature on a new dating database designed purely for singletons with pets.

The Animal Lovers Dating Group has been set up on Facebook by dog lover Kathryn Bevan to provide a place where "single animal lovers can meet and chat and find love" and so far it has 111 members.

The initiative is the brainchild of Miss Bevan, who owns and runs Pampered Pooch dog grooming service in Clydach.

Miss Bevan, who has three Shitsus called Ollie, Minx and Tia, said the inspiration for the dating group came from her personal circumstances.



She said: "I was single and ended up going out on dates only to find that half of them didn't like dogs. I got on really well with one guy but then found out that he was allergic to dogs and I have heard similar stories from my friends, some of whom are also dog groomers and have more than one dog themselves; when people find out you have five or six dogs they run a mile!

"It then occurred to me to start a group for animal lovers so you will know that you have the same interests as someone else before you begin."

It soon became clear to the 42-year-old that there were indeed others with similar pet problems out there.


She said: "I have had 111 people join in the first week, which isn't bad and shows that there is a need for something like this. Everyone who has joined has admitted that they have had some issues with wanting to date someone but discovering that their pet becomes a barrier."

Encouraging others to take advantage of the free service, she added: "It's not just a group for dog lovers, it's for anyone who is single and has an interest in animals.

"All you need to do is apply to join the group on Facebook. You can have a picture on your page with your pet if you wish, and wait to be approved."

One member said: "If I ever look on dating sites, I always look for guys with dogs in their profile pictures so this site is just perfect."

Right of His Bonnet

Man drank 6 litres of cider at house party, flipped car as he drove home and then walked off

By South Wales Evening Post  |  Posted: November 09, 2016

By Jason Evans

 

A SWANSEA man who drank six litres of cider and a couple of cans of beer at a house party before driving home ended up flipping the car into its roof on a country lane and walking off, a court has heard.

Swansea Magistrates Court was told that police were called to Llwyn Mawr Road near Sketty on the night of October 21 following reports of a single-vehicle crash.


There they found a VW Passat on is roof with blood-stained airbags deployed, and the keys in the ignition — but no driver.


Sharon Anderson, prosecuting, said a witness told police he had seen three people — one of them carrying a flagon of cider — leaving the crash, and officers subsequently found the vehicles' occupants nearby.

The court heard Jonathan Sutton initially denied having anything to do with the VW but later said that on the night in question he had collected a friend from the Landore area of Swansea and driven to a party in Waunarlwydd.

He said he had later left the party to go home but had lost control on a corner, hit an embankment, and over-turned the car.

A subsequent breath test showed the 35-year-old had 83microgrammes of alcohol in 100 millilitres of breath — the legal limit is 35.

Sutton, of Merlin Crescent, Mayhill, pleaded guilty to driving with excess alcohol, driving without due care and attention, and driving without a licence or insurance when he appeared before a district judge sitting at the magistrates court.

A probation report into the defendant said he had consumed three cans of lager and two three-litre bottles of cider at the party, and could not remember much of what happened on night.

The court heard that Sutton — who works as a part-time cleaner in the warehouse of the B&M store in Cwmdu — has 18 previous convictions for some 27 offences.

For driving with excess alcohol Sutton was disqualified from driving for 24 months and was given a 12 month community order with a thinking skills programme and rehabilitation course, and was ordered to complete 80 hours of unpaid work. No separate penalty was imposed for the other offences.

District judge Neil Thomas told Sutton — who only holds a provision licence — that if he was caught driving while disqualified, "custody is pretty much inevitable".

Stranger Danger

​Naked images of stranger pleasuring himself found on teenager's Nintendo 3DS

By South Wales Evening Post  |  Posted: November 07, 2016

By Paul Turner
 

Nineteen-year-old Shannon Bridges was bought the gaming device by her boyfriend as an early birthday present.


But when she switched it on, she got a shock.

The device was bought from a store in Cardiff and she contacted them to raise concerns, fearing, 'What if a parent bought it?'

The psychology student at Cardiff Metropolitan University, said: "I felt so sick – I was laughing at them but all I could think about was if a parent bought that for their child. Imagine if they saw them.

"I thought it was a little bit irresponsible of them (the shop) to not reset it because this could have been a lot worse."

"I kind of would have liked them to apologise more than 'sorry to hear this' because at the end of the day, it wasn't very nice to see and they were very lucky that this was not someone else or a child, because the consequences could be extremely different."

Birds eh?

A teenager is being taken to court after feeding a chip to a pigeon in Swansea
By EPerkins1  |  Posted: November 07, 2016

By Liz Perkins
 

A TEENAGER has ruffled feathers by feeding a chip to a pigeon and is now being hauled before the courts.

Lauren Paige Smith, aged 19, had been enjoying a McDonald's meal for her lunch when she decided to feed the bird one of her fries, which she claimed was gobbled up.

But a council litter inspector came rushing over and gave her a £25 fine.


The Cardiff customer service advisor said there was no "litter" left by the bird and refused to pay the fine, issued following the incident on July 8.

It follows a campaign launched by the local authority to encourage residents to feed the litter bins and not the gulls and pigeons in the city centre, after complaints they were becoming a nuisance.

Lauren, whose fine has now increased to £100 because of her refusal to pay, said: "I was feeding the seagulls and pigeons some of my lunch when a man who worked for the council came out of nowhere and told me I was littering.


"He asked for my details because he wanted me to pay a £25 fine. I asked him are you serious? I was feeding the birds — and they ate all of the chips.

"But the fine has escalated and now I'm being hauled into court.

"There's so much worse things going on in the world. I was only in Swansea because I was doing training for work."

She is now expected to go before the courts on November 15.

Her grandfather said of the situation, "it's madness."

He added: "Lauren has never been in trouble in her life and they're summoning her to court for feeding some birds.

"This is a complete waste of taxpayers' money. Anybody with an ounce of sense would realise this is ridiculous.

"There's needles and syringes everywhere in parks and they choose to fine a young girl for feeding a bird? What a job's worth."

Above: Image - South West News Service

A Swansea Council spokesman said they had been cracking down to stop people from throwing food on the ground and added: "We have an ongoing campaign in the city centre to discourage people from throwing food on the ground for seagulls and pigeons.

"City centre businesses raised concerns about aggressive birds attacking shoppers and so we are working with these businesses as part of wider plans to keep the city litter-free.

"The Tidy Swansea campaign highlights the fact that throwing food on the ground is a littering offence and anyone caught doing it risks being issued with a fixed penalty.

"Discarded food and other types of litter can have a negative impact on the look of our city centre and we are doing what we can to make sure the city centre is an attractive place for visitors to come and enjoy."

He's a Lusty 'Un ( and they want kids!!!)

Groom measuring 3ft 7ins needed stepladder to 'kiss the bride'
By South Wales Evening Post  |  Posted: November 04, 2016

James, 28, clambered up the four-step wooden ladder to proudly stand next to 5ft 7in bride Chloe Roberts at their plush white wedding.

And it meant he was able to stand eye-to-eye with Chloe, 22, as they exchanged marriage vows - and kissed in an historic church.l

Delighted James said: "I had the steps especially made. They actually made me a couple of inches taller than her.

"It meant we could have a proper kiss just like any other couple on their wedding day."

James and trainee teacher Chloe tied the knot in the traditional ceremony at St Margaret's Church in Bodelwyddan, North Wales, after a three-year romance.

James - an actor who performs in Christmas pantomimes - said: "It was the perfect day. It really couldn't have been any better.

"We had 80 people there for the day and then 150 more in the evening. It was amazing."

James had a traditional stag do with a twist. He said: "They dressed me up as Snow White which was great - I'm always the dwarf so it was a great change."

James has a rare genetic condition called Diastrophic Dysplasia - both his parents are of average height but carried a rare gene. His older brother Phil has the same condition.


Chloe and James - known as Jay to his bride - got engaged in 2014 after he popped the question at a lakeside jetty in a country park.

Chloe sat on a jetty while James got down on one knee behind her to propose in true style.

He said: "I always knew I wanted to get down on one knee. She put the ring on and it was an incredible feeling."

The couple are both devoted Christians and were waiting until they were married before living together. They are are hoping to have children in the future.

Chloe said: "We decided to wait until after the wedding because it would be a fresh new start for both of us and because of the belief and the faith we've grown up with."

The pair said that, despite his condition, they planned to start a family - and would have an increased risk of having a baby with dwarfism if Chloe also carried the gene.

Chloe said: "Family is the key that we can't wait to have.

"We don't have any concerns if there's a chance of having a baby in Jay's position.

"I'm not even prepared to take the test to see if I have the gene because I think that at the end of the day it won't change my mind about having kids either way.

"We would love it the same as any other baby that we would have."


Above: Image - Wales News

The couple's big day was filmed for a BBC Wales documentary before they jetted off on honeymoon to the Caribbean.

Chloe said: "There may be a 2ft height difference but when you are in love little things like that don't matter."

But not everyone in Chloe's family was initially as happy about her choice of man.

Her mum Sarah said: "She told me she was going out with him and I wasn't happy particularly. I was saying: 'Chloe, he is a dwarf'.

"But as I got to know him I just look at him and see Jay - not anything else."

Born Small: The Wedding, part two is on BBC Wales on Monday, November 7, at 10.40pm. The first part is available on iPlayer.

Beef Curtains For Hannah

By South Wales Evening Post  |  Posted: November 02, 2016

By Wales News Service
 
 

A hungry teenager was charged a whopping £690.50 for her late night kebab.

Hannah Whitehouse, 19, ordered a £3.95 chicken kebab - and entered her PIN in the card machine without checking the amount.

But she was shocked at the PIN number blunder which left her facing a near £700 bill for her 3am snack at the takeaway in Wrexham.

Hannah said: "It was about 3am on Sunday morning. I was not concentrating and just put my PIN in and carried on waiting for the food."

But Hannah noticed the huge amount she had just paid when she was given the receipt at the kebab shop in Wrexham.

The manager tried to refund the money back onto her card.


Central Kebab and Burger House in Wrexham

But the money wasn't able to be refunded onto her card - and Hannah went home facing the big bill.

Hannah, of Llay, Wrexham, said "Everyone was laughing in the kebab house.

"It was the most expensive kebab I've ever had.

"They gave me the money back the next day - but I still had to pay for the kebab.

"We go there all the time and would definitely go back. The kebab was lovely."



Central Kebab and Burger House shop manager Rush Yaman said they were happy to sort the problem out as soon as they could.

"The girls are regulars here," he said.

"It was a big mistake. You could fly to a five-star hotel for that money, but we sorted it out for them straight away."