All Activity

Jack Stephen’s would have been shouting at the TV if he was watching the Chelsea v Arsenal Women’s Champions League match tonight - they even had VAR it chose not to intervene: I guess hair pulling is fair game in a good ‘ol girl fight = nothing to see here!

Soggy having a normal one again. What an awful man.

There are 20 zones all over the place that aren't clearly marked. I don't believe anyone who says they consistently stay below that limit.

If he wasn't extremely busy at this time of year, Jesus would be weeping.

Brecon Beacons and Black Mountains aren’t too shabby either

Other than that looks the part.

I'll be more pleased about it next time. More frustrating that it's a road I used to drive on a lot and was previously 30mph (in my years of living near it, never any accidents or issues that I'm aware of).

People whinging about getting caught doing 25% over the speed limit..

I’d rather lose in regulation time than win in over time. Our priority has to be returning to the Premier soccer ball league

mind games bro. We are toying with Arteta

Splendid. I love Athens. Did it once by hiring a cabbie almost as old as the structures and taken everywhere, including a lap of the original Olympic stadium against my youngest (which was closed, but said old boy managed to get us in). Enjoy.

Makes more sense to start Stewart and give larin the game on tuesday(given he’ll be getting back late from international duty

I’m still in two minds. Have you got anymore information you could share?

Staying in Athens and ticking off a bucket list item - visiting the Acropolis / Parthenon and standing in awe of these incredible structures that have stood for thousands of years.

Jesus SoG, I push at the limits of a reasonable post, but that's something else.

He's going on about peaodophiles again, trying to score points or making jokes about it once again. A truly vile person.

Just checked and no signatures on the sleeves.

No I will just ignore due to who posted it. You really don’t understand forums

Will the same people who kicked off about sexual abuse carried out by migrants also kick off about this? (Long report - avoid if you have a short attention span) Vulnerable children exposed to sexual abuse on 'industrial scale' at hundreds of illegal care homes More than 800 illegal children’s care homes are operating on an “industrial scale”. In one case uncovered by LBC, two ex-soldiers sexually abused a 15 year-old girl and we found holes drilled in children's bedroom doors allowing carers to spy on them 01 April 2026, 06:00 | Updated: 01 April 2026, 10:06 Want LBC stories before everyone else? Set us as your Preferred Source on Google LBC uncovers scandal of 'unregulated' care homes By Andy Hughes, LBC Crime Correspondent, and Tom Wall The most vulnerable children in society are being sent to illegal and unregulated care homes, some of which are staffed by convicted criminals, a joint investigation between LBC and The Bureau of Investigative Journalism has discovered. Listen to this article More than 800 illegal children’s care homes are operating on an “industrial scale” in towns and cities across the UK, none of which are registered with independent regulator Ofsted, exposing young people to exploitation and abuse with no scrutiny. In one case, we discovered a 15-year-old girl was brutally sexually abused over several hours by two ex-soldiers at an illegal care home in County Durham. Both were employed despite having criminal convictions for violence, in one of the worst safeguarding failures of the UK’s care system. LBC tracked down and confronted the care home's owner, Paul McGrory, about the failures. He denied any wrongdoing, insisting that these carers had "amazing references". There is no evidence to suggest he was aware of the abuse. As well as this, LBC gained access to the care home itself, where neighbours alleged children were assaulted and filmed in distressed states while trying to escape. We discovered holes drilled in the bedroom doors of the children’s rooms, allowing carers to spy on the children, as well as permanently locked windows. Read more: Parents should not be only ones to ensure children stay safe online – watchdog Read more: French Senate votes to block social media access for under-15s We discovered holes drilled in the bedroom doors of the children’s rooms, allowing carers to spy on the children. Picture: LBC The care home, which was run by a company called MAP Adventures, was told the girl was “at the highest risk of child sexual exploitation”. That assessment was signed by Liam Ramsay and Stephen Hurst, two former soldiers in their 40s. We can reveal the pair had been recruited to look after vulnerable children despite holding seven previous convictions between them, including four violent offences. Alice – which is not her real name – was moved to the care home by her local authority in south Wales. It was not registered with Ofsted and so not subject to inspections. Alice was to live at this home, with no other children, under the supervision of two MAP Adventures carers. When Hurst saw a message on the company’s WhatsApp group asking for staff to cover a shift on 3rd October 2024, he immediately alerted Ramsay. That day, the two men drove Alice into Durham city centre, telling their duty manager they were taking her on a river walk. In fact, they took her to a pub. And then on to two more. They bought her wine, cocktails, and shots. As the afternoon wore on, Alice became increasingly drunk. At the final pub, the conversation turned to drugs. Ramsay knew where to get some cocaine, the court was told, and they drove to pick it up. Alice took some. Hurst went to a supermarket and bought more alcohol; this time vodka and gin. They headed back to the property. When they arrived, Alice was plied with more drink and drugs until she was, in her words, “totally out of it”. Then the two men sexually assaulted her for hours. In the morning, Ramsay and Hurst made efforts to cover their tracks before the next shift arrived. They removed empty bottles and traces of drugs from the house. They cleaned blood caused by Alice’s nosebleed. The following day, Alice ran away from the home, called her mum for help, and was picked up by police at a nearby railway station. In April 2025, Ramsay and Hurst were found guilty of numerous offences, including sexual activity with a child. Ramsay, 40, was jailed for 11 years while Hurst, 46, was jailed for nine years. Both men were placed on the sex offenders register for life. “Rather than do your duty,” the judge told them, “you both behaved absolutely appallingly and in a way that would make right-thinking members of the public hearing about it recoil, firstly in abject disbelief and then probably in horror.” “I was in care to be looked after, taken care of and protected from harm,” the girl said, in a victim’s statement read out in court. “These men have done the exact opposite to that. They have sexually abused me for hours and have caused me so much pain and destruction.” Their assault, the court heard, had left Alice with injuries that caused her pain for months. But the physical damage was only part of it. Her parents said that after giving evidence at the trial, she overdosed. “After [our daughter] provided evidence during her trial, we received a call to say that she was en-route to hospital after taking an overdose,” they said in a statement read out in court. “[Our daughter] was screaming down the phone, saying that she’d been raped, having flashbacks, and shouting that she could see Liam and Stephen. This is just one small example of our day-to-day lives now.” Ramsay and Hurst’s convictions were made public by Durham Constabulary, but the press release omitted key information about how Alice came to be in the care home, the company that ran it, the local authority responsible for placing her there, and Ramsay and Hurst’s criminal history. Liam Ramsey (right), 40, and Stephen Hurst (left), 46, took the 15-year-old into Durham city centre and plied her with wine and cocktails. Picture: Durham Constabulary We have obtained these details – and have connected Alice’s nightmare to the growing nationwide scandal of illegal children’s homes. The Welsh local authority which placed Alice with MAP Adventures claimed the company was registered to provide outdoor pursuits – including short periods of respite no more than 28 days in length – for children in care. We have not been able to substantiate this. The company was not registered with Ofsted or the Adventure Activities Licensing Authority, which accredits outdoor activity centres for young people in the UK. We have spoken to two former MAP Adventures staff. They said the company had looked after Alice beyond the 28-day legal limit at the request of the council involved. Homes providing these breaks, which are supposed to allow children in care to take part in recreational or sporting activities, do not need to be registered with Ofsted. But Alice was put in the care of MAP Adventures because she was at risk of sexual exploitation. She was there for her own protection. This means the firm’s home should have been registered and checked – yet it had never been visited by an Ofsted inspector. “We were told [our daughter] would have a chance of resetting and it would be an opportunity for [her] to engage in outdoor activities,” Alice’s parents told the court. “However, the reality is both Stephen Hurst and Liam Ramsay jointly decided to supply our daughter with copious amounts of alcohol and drugs, knowing her vulnerabilities, before sexually abusing her.” After we identified MAP Adventures by obtaining a transcript of the court case, we contacted Alice’s local authority again. Despite the nature of the events we were asking about, the council refused to answer any further questions or give a public statement. It said it would be making no further comment. LBC gained access to the care home itself, where neighbours alleged children were assaulted and filmed in distressed states while trying to escape.Picture: LBC Ofsted is responsible for prosecuting illegal care home providers. There is no public record of any successful cases brought by the regulator, although a spokesperson said it has now started “several” prosecutions. The spokesperson said it would not comment on individuals but told LBC: “Too many children are being placed in unlawful settings where they’re at risk of harm. The use of these placements must stop. “Ofsted is working hard to investigate unregistered children’s homes and compel them to either register or close. The test for prosecution is high, and gathering enough evidence to ensure a conviction can be a lengthy and expensive process. “But we hope that measures in the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill will allow us to act more quickly and help make sure all children are placed in safe, regulated homes that provide the care they need.” MAP Adventures went bust in August last year, with unpaid tax bills. It was run by Paul McGrory, himself an ex-serviceman. The company’s website is no longer live but internet archives show that it once boasted of his track record of working with children in the UK, Ireland, Oman and the UAE. It said his team were “highly qualified and share their knowledge and skills to give the best possible adventure experiences”. McGrory, a former sergeant from the Royal Army Physical Training Corps, spoke to us over a video call from the terrace of a bar in Cyprus, where he moved after his company collapsed. He said he was “sickened to the core” by the abuse, which he said had ruined lots of people's lives. “Could I have stopped it?” he told us. “No. There’s nothing I could have done ... my company couldn’t have done anything.” He claimed only one conviction was picked up by the company’s background checks but that he judged it to be immaterial. “Ramsay had a criminal record and that was for assault,” he said. “I knew that. I did 22 years in the Army, did I scrap? One hundred percent. That doesn’t mean you’re not fit to work with anybody.” McGrory claimed he carried out spot checks on the properties himself and paid for independent inspections. “We were not regulated but… I would get care home managers at my own cost… and they would come and inspect our homes,” he said. MAP Adventures’ application to sign the MoD’s Armed Forces Covenant, pledging to ensure former service personnel are treated fairly, was approved in 2022. The company displayed the covenant logo on its website alongside the emblem of the Career Transition Partnership, a scheme which helps people transition from a military career into civilian employment. The MoD said it did not have the powers to check if companies were operating illegally. It added it had removed MAP Adventures from its covenant database. The firm’s pledge, which was previously published by the MoD, has also been deleted. A MAP Adventures deputy manager gave evidence in the trial. He said around 30 people lost their jobs when the company shut down after the offences were committed. “The whole incident has tainted my view of the care sector to such an extent I couldn’t work in it again,” he told the court. “I had faith in my colleagues, most of them being veterans, and I didn’t believe I could be working alongside men capable of carrying out such heinous crimes against a vulnerable child.” in 2024, nearly 800 children in England were sent to live in illegal accommodation, for an average of six months each. Picture: LBC Councils say unregistered homes are only ever used as a last resort when no lawful accommodation is available. Yet this understates the shocking prevalence of illegal homes in the UK. In 2024, nearly 800 children in England were sent to live in illegal accommodation, for an average of six months each. The Public Accounts Committee said the figure was “unacceptable” and children were being put in danger by a broken system. But earlier this month, the government rejected the committee’s call for the Department for Education to set out how it will reduce the number of children in illegal homes to zero by 2027. “The idea that there could be other children in a similar position to the victim in this case at this very second should simplify things for the government,” said Sir Geoffrey Clifton-Brown, chair of the committee. “We call on the government to reconsider our recommendation. The number of children placed in illegal homes should be zero by the end of 2027. Period.” Dame Rachel de Souza, the children’s commissioner for England, said serious questions must be asked about how people with criminal records were allowed to work with children. “This case is a deeply distressing example of profound failures by systems and services intended to keep the most vulnerable children safe,” she said. “This child was sent hundreds of miles from home, exposed to unimaginable harm and left without the curiosity from the professionals involved in her care to step in to protect her.” A Department for Education spokesperson said: “Running an unregistered children’s care home is illegal and all children’s homes and supported accommodation providers must be registered with Ofsted or face serious consequences. “Our Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill is the most ambitious piece of child protection legislation in a generation and will bring important additional safeguards for children in care, as well as giving Ofsted the power to issue fines and take decisive action against illegal providers. “We are also working to establish a new Child Protection Authority in England, as well as introducing mandatory reporting of child sexual abuse through the Crime and Policing Bill and investing £50 million in the expansion of the Child House model to support victims of child sexual abuse.” © Global 2026

What is wrong with these people? It happened in Birmingham too apparently. https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/clapham-teenagers-chaos-met-police-london-b2949750.html

Shit. I also read that Leicester's 6 point deduction has been reversed on appeal. It's been a really bad news day today!

For sure, when you get there it's an absolute shit hole that gives Pompey a run for it's money, but the view on the way in is awesome!

The view coming in to Newport from the North on the A40 / A449 is absolutely stunning to be fair!

Chelsea recording losses of £264m but haven’t broken any rules has got to be a April fool gag