25/02/2014 BBC Wales Today

Good evening. How to pay for help for children

with special educational needs. It's one of the biggest challenges facing

councils as they aim to balance their budgets for next year. In

Powys a decision to close assessment centres and support units across the

county was put on hold for a year amid protests and disruption. Here's

our education correspondent, Arwyn Jones.

Protesters arrived this morning. Some campaigning against cuts to

libraries, others about elderly care and others were worried about the

future of special education needs. This demonstration has been

organised on social network site in, but there are buses here from every

part of the country. All coming here with one very clear message. Even

our is one of the children who could have been affected. He is at one of

the centres threatened with closure. They don't let him mess around. He

would just wonder of because he cannot do it. He plays the clown.

Instead of doing his work that is what he does, so he does not do it.

Now he is made to do it and the difference is amazing. There was

good news, councillors decided not to close the special units that

education just for now. We have to get the quality of provision through

the county. That is not resident at the moment. Success from any of

these protesters, but not many. This lady is moving her house -- family

to Leicestershire. Her son has a form of autism especially other edgy

occasional needs. Has sung has threatened to kill himself because

his needs are not being met. Experts say he is not given the support he

needs. The closest school that can accommodate him and his needs is

over 100 miles away. My son has a disability. It is a hidden

disability. If the child has a physical disability and wants to

attend a school and needs provision is like putting in a ramp, that gets

done. But because this is a mental disability, there is no provision.

The school in Leicestershire costs thousands of pounds every year. The

council vote will pay for it, but Powys has refused to make the same

commitment. Powys council says it will not comment on individual cases

but says discussions are ongoing. So while there were some cause for

celebration today, for others, the fight goes on.

Further concerns about heart patients dying in Wales while

waiting for operations have been patients dying in Wales while

raised by the Royal College of Surgeons. The College has written to

the Health Inspectorate Wales asking what action has been taken six

months after it warned patient safety was being put at risk. Two

reviews were launched but the reports have not been published. HIW

says it continues to monitor the situation and will be considering

the reports once they are available. It's emerged that the Prime Minister

will meet Welsh Tory AMs and MPs later this week as the fallout

continues over the party's divisions over devolution. Tory AMs will

travel to Westminster on Thursday for what is described as their

regular annual meeting with MPs. It follows the sacking of four shadow

cabinet ministers by Welsh Tory leader, Andrew RT Davies. There are

also tensions between him and the Secretary of State for Wales, David

Jones. An inquest into the death of a

five-week-old baby from Pembrokeshire has heard that a nurse

took him off a ventilator without the knowledge of her superiors. Alex

and Bronwyn Rhodes' son, Rohan, was born 14 weeks prematurely in 2012.

He was transferred to St Michael's Hospital in Bristol for surgical

assessment, where he died. The inquest continues.

It's been described as a ticking time bomb and now surgeons say obese

patients are being denied access to potentially life-saving treatments.

The British Obesity and Metabolic Surgery Society says patients in

England have much better access to gastric band and by-pass operations.

Here's Paul Heaney. Les price is 44 years old and nearly

37 stone. He says he has always been big but when he was injured in work

and when his wife passed away, his eating habits got worse. His doctor

says surgery is an option but he has been turned down three times. I

don't meet the conditions. I have to have chronic heart disease or sleep

apnoea so I don't qualify. Some people will be watching this and

saying why don't you change your lifestyle? Why can't you do that

yourself? I have been trying but it is not happening. You are considered

obese if your body mass indexes over 25. To be eligible for surgery you

have to have a BMI of over 50 as well as having health problems like

diabetes and heart problems and sleep apnoea. In England,

diabetes and heart problems and different, a BMI of 40 or more and

if you have other health concerns it can be lower and surgery is

recommended if your BMI is over 50. Allison from near Bridgend says she

has been on many diets and used appetite suppressant pills. But with

her health deteriorating, she eventually had a gastric sleeve

operation where most of her stomach was removed. Three years later she

has dropped from a size 26 to a size 12. The doctor said I would probably

die of a massive heart attack within ten years. I had type two diabetes

and high blood pressure. Now some surgeons want a change in the rules

here so that more people can access weight loss surgery on the NHS. It

is not a cure, but it has to be part of the package. Out of the ten worst

places for obesity in the UK, seven are here in Wales. The Welsh

government says it is considering changing the criteria when it comes

for people having surgery to lose weight, but it is warning it is not

the only way to solve this problem. This man says surgery would save his

life and changing the rules cannot come 11 workers at a residential

home set to be closed by Ceredigion Council have been suspended from

their posts. The local authority says the

decision has been made to allow independent investigators to look at

issues linked to protecting vulnerable adults. Last week, the

council confirmed that Llandysul's Awel Deg Residential Home would shut

because of staffing Awel Deg Residential Home would shut

are plans to re-open is as a dedicated dementia care centre.

Football, and a defeat for Billy Barr's first game in temporary

charge of Wrexham tonight. They lost 5-0 against Luton in the conference.

In League Two Newport's play-off hopes suffered a blow as they lost

2-1 at home to AFC Wimbledon. Now the weather.

Sunshine and showers and Mac goes that tomorrow as well. Some places

will stay dry, but we will see some rain after dark. Most of the country

is dry tonight. Clear spells with just a few showers spreading in to

the south from the Bristol Channel. Quite a chilly night. I would not be

surprised if some places have a ground frost. Tomorrow morning there

will be showers ground frost. Tomorrow morning there

South and a few turning up in the North. Otherwise a lot of places dry

and bright with lovely sunshine. Across the rest of the UK tomorrow,

mixture of sunshine and showers. Most of the showers in the north and

some of them are heavy and wintry on higher ground. Snow for the hills

and mountains. A lot of laces dry with some sunshine. Nine is Celsius

implement. At 3pm tomorrow, a few showers here and there in Wales. But

quite a few places will miss them and stay dry. The wind freshening in

the West. Why early evening, that is ahead of this frontal system

bringing rain to Ireland and it is heading our way. Tomorrow evening

dry start and then it turns wet and windy with a spell of strong wind

and heavy rain, clearing during the early hours. Thursday will bring

and heavy rain, clearing during the some sunshine and showers. Some of

the showers will be heavy with hail and thunder. Snow for the hills and

mountains. On Friday, low-pressure made ring a spell of rain and hill

snow. That will clear and it is back to sunshine and showers Friday. It

looks like we are in a chilly start to march with rain and perhaps a bit

of sleet on Saturday.