11/10/2013 BBC Wales Today

Welcome to Wales Today. Tonight's headlines. Waiting to be officially

diagnosed with autism. Concern thousands like Tom are missing out

on the right education because the system is so slow.

Everybody just wants their children to be seen and if they have got a

condition or not. People in Wales pay more for the

electricity than customers in England and Scotland. How is that

fair? A hot topic at Plaid Cymru's

conference. The party sets out how they'd drive down energy bills for

customers. Jamie Owen's inside story on how

we've got it wrong when it comes to tackling the obesity epidemic.

Good evening. A manager with his future on the lin. Chris Coleman

says his career could be decided by Wales' next two games but with so

many players missing he admits it will be tough.

Thousands of children with autism may not be getting the education

they need because it's taking so long to be diagnosed. According to

information obtained by Wales Today there are almost 4,000 children here

with Autism Spectrum Disorder but many more are waiting to be seen.

According to the National Autistic Society more than half of those

finally diagnosed waited two years or more and nearly 60% say the

process took too long. Abigail Neal reports now from Pembrokeshire,

where some children have been waiting up to seven years.

Nine-year-old Tom Fairburn has a chromosome condition which gives him

learning difficulties. It's also thought he has autism. What does

that say? Autism is a spectrum disorder which affects people

differently but individuals can often find it hard to relate to

others and the world around them. They react very differently to other

children, yes. It can just get really upset old really cross.

Sometimes they can't cope with their emotions.

Wales Today has found there are 311 children in west Wales diagnosed

with autism but Tom is one of 340 more currently waiting to be seen.

Without a diagnosis children can find it hard to get the education

they need. Tom now has a place at an autistic unit but until now he's

struggled in mainstream school. Last year he was excluded 14 times. I

felt they thought he was naughty. To be honest, I felt they could not

cope with him they did not want him in a school. That is what I felt was

the end. I think Tom felt like that as well.

Our research shows that the majority of children with autism, two thirds

are in mainstream education. For those like Tom who need more

specialist care, there are 60 places available in Pembrokeshire, more

than in many other parts of Wales. But Hayley Wood who runs a parent

support group says it's not enough. The parents I work with have

difficulty in having their children placed there. What parents were told

why somebody in education that the problem is there has been no

planning for these children over the last five to six years. Figures

showed there are 4000 children in Wales who are diagnosed with autism.

The situation in Pembrokeshire, we asked councils how many more are

awaiting an official diagnosis. All but one told us they did not hold

that data, it was a matter for the local health board.

When we shared that with one leading charity, they felt it was a worrying

sign. Local authorities need to know how many children are waiting

because then they can plan their provision efficiently and we know

that early intervention is crucial to the development of and benefits

of children with autism. There are signs the situation in

Pembrokeshire is improving. The council is developing specialist and

mainstream provision, and in January the health board will be taking on

more staff to cut waiting times for children like Tom.

Abigail Neal reporting there. Well we can speak now to Emma Carver from

Ashgrove School in the Vale of Glamorgan. Good evening. You work in

a specialist school for children with autism from the age of three.

You must know what difference the early diagnosis can make.

Absolutely. The early years of children's dedication is important

but their early intervention, whether it is in the mainstream

setting or in a specialist setting for a child whose needs are more

complex, it means a child with autism can develop the communication

skills that are really the bedrock for future learning. The later this

begins, the bigger the academic gap is going to be. Pupils that are

diagnosed later, we know have significantly greater risk of

developing anxiety. This can be due to a failure in education are

socially and because of a lack of understanding of the people around

them. The longer that you know you are different but don't know why,

the more likely that is to happen. Within our school we recognised this

and we have made it a priority to develop -- deliver pre-Bacon assists

training -- three-day gnosis training so staff are aware of

indicators of autism. Many parents that we spoke to felt the demand for

autism services has grown faster than the provision. Would you agree

with that? Within the Vale of Glamorgan we have been able to build

capacity to meet the needs of pupils as prevalence has increased. We now

have a real exemplar the early intervention based at our school and

an outreach service which supports intervention based at our school and

the increasing number of pupils in mainstream settings.

A man from Mold arrested yesterday as part of an investigation into

historic child abuse at children's homes in north Wales has been

released on bail. The 52-year-old was arrested as part of Operation

Pallial on suspicion of child cruelty and indecent assault against

four boys and one girl in the 1980s when they were 13 or 14 years old.

He's been bailed until January. A teacher from Blackwood has accused

her former employers of victimising her as she raised concerns about

pupil safety and the conduct of other staff. Governors at

Pontllanfraith Comprehensive in Caerphilly sacked Kim Shaw in

September 2012 because of a "breakdown in relationships"

following a previous final written warning. They said at today's

employment tribunal that the correct prceedures were followed.

Plaid Cymru leader Leanne Wood has announced a proposal that she says

that drive down household energy bills. At their conference she

unveiled plans to pay 5000 new doctors are putting up the price of

sugary drinks. It is all meant to help with the cost of living.

Getting a feel for things. At Aberystwyth University researchers

are turning plants into fuel. Energy and the price we pay for it has

become a flash point in the political battle over the cost of

living. Leanne Wood says Plaid Cymru feels the pain of voters who are fed

up with their household bills going up. Then she convinced them they

have a viable plan to bring those bills down again? Leanne Wood warmed

to the theme in her conference speech. She wants a government owned

energy company. People in Wales pay more for their electricity than

customers in England and Scotland. How is that fair? It is not. Our

country produces more electricity than it uses. But we are powerless.

She went further on the cost of living, committing her party to rent

controls. She had a new policy. It'll be paid

for by putting a 20p levy of every litre of sugary drinks. We would

employ a thousand more doctors with the money raised ringing Wales up to

the UK average and reducing the need to take services further away from

people. This is Plaid Cymru's alternative to hospital

centralisation. The local hospital is a big issue in Rhondda Cynon Taff

where she will be a candidate at the next election. Plaid Cymru are

celebrating a big win of her next election. Plaid Cymru are

leadership, the by-election in Anglesey. Some said and I bleached

-- leadership Plaid Cymru could not swim in the North. This year has

proven them wrong. And that is just for starters. Plaid Cymru said it

will put Wales first and allowed to keep the momentum going if voters at

puts Plaid Cymru first in the next election.

Our political editor, Nick Servini, joins us now from Aberystwyth.

Energy prices was one of the headline announcements this

afternoon. It taps into that sphere of gas and registry prices rising.

There is a big increase in the bills on the way. All the major parties

have talked about this in conference season and in a way we have had the

typical response from the Conservatives which is to get people

on the lowest possible tariff. You could argue atypical response from

labour which is to stop the companies increasing the prices. A

typical response from the Nationalists fear which is to create

a Wales wide organisation which will buy in bulk and remove the

volatility of the prices for Welsh consumers. The other interesting

thing is that Leanne work has been speaking this week about taking the

centre ground. As centre ground in Wales being further to the left than

the centre ground across the rest of the UK as a whole. I think that was

in evidence today in that speech with the eye-catching proposals

about attacks on fizzy drinks, the interdiction of rent controls,

evidence of all fashion market intervention. Did she have much to

say about independence for Wales? Not a great deal. It is our dream,

she says, to see an independent Wales so we can be the nation we

want to be. Even if you believe in independence there is an

acknowledgement that the Welsh economy is far too weak at the

moment to consider it. The big question is, whether economic

policies like this can strengthen that economy? Canada reach out to

potential voters for Plaid Cymru to put them into government in a few

years time so they can make decisions in the future.

A comprehensive school in Caerphilly which closed a year ago after

asbestos was found there, won't fully reopen until 2014. Cwmcarn

High School was due to reopen in September but plans were affected

when a contractor died on the site. Some pupils will return in December

but it won't be open to all students until January.

Talks have been continuing at Wales' largest drift mine after company

directors announced they were filing for administration. Unity Mine near

Glynneath employs 220 people. Managers met with apprentices to

discuss their future this morning. They're expected to meet with the

entire workforce next week. One of the UKs leading surgeons is

warning we're getting it wrong when it comes to tackling our obesity

crisis. As part of BBC Wales' Live Longer Wales series, Dr Simon Blease

says more effort is needed to combat our addiction to sugar if the

country is to become healthier. He's been speaking to Jamie Owen who's

spent the last six months changing his own diet and lifestyle to

improve his health and wellbeing. They say a picture is worth a

thousand words. This is an MRI scan and it is about a photograph my

insides. We are bombarded with messages about healthy eating,

taking more exercise and cutting alcohol consumption and yet we tend

to ignore those messages. Perhaps if we had this opportunity to dip

inside our bodies we might change our lifestyles. Here are the images.

We are going to look as if we have an zippy new. Isn't that wonderful?

Those images from the scan are projected onto my chest. I can look

inside my body, my my guide to this snapshot of my health. You have got

a fair deposition of fact over your abdomen. Men deposit their fat on

their bellies. Using some clever camera trickery I can fast forward

into the future and look at what's my internal organs might look like

perhaps in 20 or 30 years time. It is a horrible deposition of fat

all-around into the blood vessels as you can see. Not everyone gets to

see their insides or into the future. That's if we did we might

heed the messages of healthy eating, cutting alcohol and doing more

exercise. One of Harley Street leading surgeons say we're getting

it's wrong when it comes to tackling obesity. We have been fingering the

wrong villain. We talk about a low-fat diet, fats being harmful.

All along it is sugar that is the harmful product. The very high sugar

diet that is typical of post-war era that was encouraged to try to give

you more energy is now known to be causing the harm. I have always

hated the chamber that is no quick fix if we're serious about losing

weight getting fit. We like easy answers but perhaps the answer is

simple and yet unpalatable. Eat better, drink less alcohol and do

more exercise. For many of us, including me, if only it were that

easy. And you can find out how Jamie got

on with his weight-loss and fitness regime on Jamie Owen: Fat and

Forty-Something, here on BBC One Wales tonight at 8.30pm.

Still to come in the programme. Rehearsals for the choir's

performance on Monday, marking the centenary of Britain worst mining

disaster at Senghenydd. With plenty of speculation about his

future, it's a crucial night for Wales boss Chris Coleman tonight.

Claire's at the Cardiff City Stadium for us tonight ahead of kick off.

Good evening. The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia are the

opponents tonight in what is a must-win game for Wales. Chris

Coleman's side are bottom of their World Cup qualifying group with two

games to go. More on that in just a minute. First, here at the home of

Cardiff City it's fair to say it's been a difficult week for the club.

There's been strong reaction to the decision to replace head of

recruitment Iain Moody, known to be manager Malky Mackay's right hand

man. We have not heard from the club. But they have released a

statement. What are Cardiff city saying? Ian Moody has left the

club. They will be an interim acting head. It says ultimate recruitment

decisions at the domain of the manager and the majority shareholder

but the key line in the statement is a quote from the owner who says I

have every faith in mocking Mackay and his team to leaders through the

challenges of the premiership. -- Malkay. He has been unsettled by the

loss of his right-hand man. Talking to fans tonight, that is what they

are concerned about that the manager must stay. You know how passionate

he is as a man about loyalty. The question is, can he get over this?

If he is going to stay he will have two. He has made it clear he will

not resign but I think the key point here is the rest of football now

knows what the situation is with him at Cardiff city and if other jobs,

bash particularly in the Premier league, he is a highly respected

manager. He will be a prime candidate should any of the jobs, in

the near future. But the night it is all about Wales and the manager who

is under pressure. Chris Coleman knows his job is on the line and

with so many players missing he knows he has a difficult task ahead.

It is the ground where he had his best moment as Wales manager and

Chris Coleman must be praying for something special at the Cardiff

city Stadium tonight to end the speculation about his future. This

time it is no Gareth Bale, no Ashleigh Williams or Ben Davis. 15

players and available through injury. There is added pressure. My

future is on the line. My contract is up in November, we have two games

remaining. The next game is massive. It is tough because we're missing a

lot of players. The big who half when we lost to Macedonia, it'll be

a big tough. The boys we have got to get great experience from it. It'll

be a big surprise if Wales got anything from the final qualifier in

Belgium on Tuesday. If they win they could end up fourth or fifth. Better

than the official seeding. That oozed Chris Coleman's chances of

leading Wales into the next qualifying campaign. -- that will

boost. We can't keep chopping and changing managers. This is the way

we are going to go. This is the way we're going to set up and play. We

need to see through. Craig Bellamy will play his final game at home for

Wales before in -- retiring from international duty. He will want to

say goodbye in style. After all the political wrangling

over European rugby, this season's campaign kicks off tonight. The

Dragons face Italian side Mogliano at Rodney Parade in the Amlin

Challenge Cup. In the Heineken Cup tomorrow, the Ospreys welcome

Leinster and the Scarlets are away to Harlequins. On Sunday, the Blues

travel to Exeter. So can Chris Coleman take some

pressure off tonight? The match is live on BBC Radio Wales and

highlights in Match of the Day Wales, at 11.05pm on BBC Two Wales.

Monday marks the centenary of Britain's worst mining disaster.

More than 400 men were killed in an underground explosion at the

Universal Colliery in Senghenydd near Caerphilly. A century on, the

community has come together to help raise funds for a memorial garden

and a new sculpture will be unveiled as The Wales National Mining

Memorial. Nick Palit reports. Choir practice at Senghenydd

Workingmen's Club for what promises to be an emotional performance on

Monday. That's the centenary of Britain's worst mining disaster. On

the 14th of October 1913 a massive underground explosion at

Senghenydd's Universal Colliery killed 439 men and affected

virtually every family in the village. It means a great deal to a

lot of people including myself and the members who had relatives who

worked at the colliery in 1930. My two grandfathers worked there. On

Monday, exactly a century on, a specially commissioned statue will

be unveiled and the community has been involved in fundraising to meet

the cost. Nant y Parc School stands on the site of the pit and many

pupils here, like Phoebe and James, lost relatives in the disaster.

They've been making miners lanterns to hold in a parade through the town

and two of the pupils will get the honour of unveiling the statue. It's

a history lesson that's made them realise they're much better off than

their ancestors. It'll be really scary because oil is not older than

as with down the mine, working. Concerts like this have boosted the

memorial fund. But a special CD has also gone on sale produced by a

local couple. Dan and Laura Curtis enrolled the help of a whole host of

Welsh celebrities to sing. Some of the stars were in Hollywood and

recorded their voices on their phones. Ioan Gruffudd is on the CD.

He put so much passion into it. The new statue is still very much under

wraps until Monday. It sits in a new memorial garden, where a century on,

this community steeped in mining can reflect on the sacrifices their

families made. And we'll be reporting live from the

village of Senghenydd on Monday when that new national mining memorial

will be unveiled. Back to this evening, and Derek is

here with the weekend forecast. There is a little rain in the

forecast but I can promise you some dry weather as well. If you need

some sunshine had to north-west Wales. A few spots of drizzle here

and there but otherwise try and clear in the west and south-west.

There was some ground frost last night. He is the picture for eight

in the morning. A lot of cloud, damp and the little rain and drizzle in

Powys and parts of the north and north-east. Better conditions in the

west, dry and breezy especially on exposed coasts. A little rain and

drizzle tomorrow, most of that in Powys and on the Brecon Beacons.

Part of the west are faring better, dry and brighter with a little

sunshine in the north-west. Temperature wise, 12-15 Celsius. The

win not as strong as today. Tomorrow, dry and breezy with some

sunshine. Tomorrow night, a little rain in places. The wind easing with

some mist and fog in Monmouthshire. On Sunday, that is a risk of a

little rain in places but the forecast is not set in stone.

Many thanks. That is it. Good week -- goodbye.