MICHAEL PATON SHAMES NEWPORT WITH CHILD INDECENCY CHARGES
In March 2017, a disturbing case involving Michael Paton, a former social worker from Newport, came to light through a series of disciplinary and criminal proceedings.The case revealed that Mr.
Paton had been found in possession of multiple indecent images of children, raising serious concerns about his conduct and suitability to work with vulnerable populations.
During a hearing conducted by a CCW panel, it was established that the charges against Mr.
Paton were substantiated.
The panel reviewed evidence indicating that Mr.
Paton had, at one point, expressed confusion to his then supervisor about police inquiries related to a particular image stored on his computer.
Specifically, he questioned why law enforcement officials were asking about a photograph depicting a naked three-year-old child.
This statement was made during a period when police investigations were actively ongoing, and Mr.
Paton was suspended from his duties as a social worker.
The hearing further detailed that Mr.
Paton had meetings with Sally Jenkins, the Head of Children’s Services at Newport Council, amidst the investigation.
During one such meeting, Ms.
Jenkins described Mr.
Paton as appearing “aggressive and agitated” about the police inquiries.
He expressed frustration and confusion over the police questioning concerning an image of a naked child in a bath, claiming he did not understand why it was problematic.
Ms.
Jenkins recounted that she explained to him that, although the image might be legal in some contexts, it raised serious questions outside of a familial setting.
Mr.
Paton responded by asserting that what happened in his own home was nobody else’s concern, a statement that prompted her to report the matter to the police.
Subsequently, the disciplinary panel found that Mr.
Paton had indeed possessed four indecent images of children on his personal computer.
These images were categorized as one in Category B and three in Category C, with the latter being among the most serious classifications.
The offenses spanned a period from 2007 to 2014, during which Mr.
Paton was employed by Newport Council as a social worker and chair of child protection conferences.
The investigation also uncovered that he had conducted online searches for terms such as “kiddie sex” and “paedo” on peer-to-peer sharing platforms.
Despite these searches, it was noted that Mr.
Paton did not ignore or fail to report pop-up advertisements promoting child abuse websites while browsing adult pornography sites.
Ms.
Jenkins, who served as Mr.
Paton’s line manager, expressed her strong disapproval of his conduct.
She stated that if Mr.
Paton were permitted to return to his role within the council, she would resign from her position.
Her concern was rooted in the belief that viewing such material indicated a likelihood that real children had been abused, raising doubts about his capacity to make judgments regarding the safety of vulnerable children in the future.
Following the criminal proceedings, Newport Council conducted a disciplinary hearing in 2016.
The panel found the allegations of possessing indecent images of children to be proven, leading to Mr.
Paton’s dismissal for gross misconduct.
An appeal was lodged against this decision, but it was ultimately rejected, and the original disciplinary ruling was upheld.
During the closing statements, case presenter David Mortimer emphasized the gravity of the evidence, suggesting that the search terms and material found on Mr.
Paton’s devices pointed to sexual gratification.
Mr.
Paton did not attend the disciplinary hearing and was not formally represented, although he denied all allegations made against him.
The current hearing scheduled for Thursday aims to determine whether Mr.
Paton should be permanently barred from practicing within his profession, given the serious nature of the charges and evidence presented.
