We really need to talk.
This is a difficult blog to write. I feel ashamed, hurt, angry, and perplexed and I do not want to draw unnecessary, unhealthy attention to a horrible situation. At the same time, we cannot allow this to become an ‘elephant in the room’. We do not need to talk publicly and in detail about this but we do need to talk quietly with one another. What has happened is real, and it is painful and damaging in many ways for many people. Yesterday the national news reported that Ben Thomas has been sentenced to ten years in prison for a string of sex offences. Some of his victims are my friends. Through sensitivity to their suffering and respect for their privacy I will not say anything more about them. His wife and family are my friends. When we lived in North Wales we played on the beach with his kids and ate ice-creams together. We have not been able to get in touch with them since this news broke and we are desperately concerned for them. Through sensitivity to their suffering and respe