Kickstart students placed at convicted paedophile's firm

Darren Kavanagh was jailed for two years in July 2016

Students on a government-funded work scheme were placed at a firm run by a convicted paedophile.

Darren Kavanagh, 46, got thousands of pounds for his company via Kickstart to take on students aged 16 to 24 on Universal Credit.

He moved to Somerset during the pandemic after being jailed in Glasgow for two years in July 2016.

The Department for Work and Pensions, which funds the scheme, said it was "committed to safeguarding claimants".

Kavanagh was put on the sex offenders register for 10 years after pleading guilty to possessing and distributing indecent images of children in 2016.

The exact amount which Kavanagh received through Kickstart has not been disclosed

He later moved to Weston-super-Mare and created Octo Leisure Ltd - which was given the Kickstart funding - as well as Weston Media Works - which provided various media-related services and employed the students.

Kavanagh, Octo Leisure Ltd, and Weston Media Works have all been contacted for comment.

Kickstart, which closed in August, was launched by the government in September 2020 to provide funding for employers to create jobs for 16 to 24 year olds on Universal Credit.

The £2bn scheme was run by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) who in turn worked with gateway providers - in this case Weston College - to distribute the funding locally.

The exact amount which Kavanagh received has not been disclosed but the scheme offered "an incentive" of £1,500 per placement and paid up to 100% of the age-relevant National Minimum Wage for 25 hours of work a week.

Weston College said none of its students were involved in the scheme and Kavanagh did not have any direct contact with any students under its care.

North Somerset Council and the Scottish Probation Service is currently investigating if Kavanagh's actions were "in breach" of the conditions of his parole.

One Kickstart student said Kavanagh had seven people working for him at one point - but it is not known if they were all on the scheme.

They said they worked with Kavanagh in person during their placement at Weston Media Works.

A source at North Somerset Council told the BBC they are "determined to find out how Kavanagh slipped through the net".

Weston Media Works has shut and had all its signage removed

A spokeswoman for the DWP said Weston College stopped recruitment with Octo Leisure Ltd in December 2021.

She added: "All gateways were required to carry out thorough checks to ensure employers had the capacity to deliver the scheme.

"We are committed to safeguarding claimants and keep our guidance under constant review."

A spokeswoman for Weston College said it followed all guidance provided by the DWP to verify "employers had the capacity to offer job roles".

She confirmed no Kickstart employees of Weston Media Works or Octo Leisure Limited were Weston College students and said the DWP "facilitated the recruitment process of approved vacancies".

Kavanagh "did not have any direct contact with students under the college's care," she said.

The council has urged children, young people and vulnerable adults not to have any contact with Kavanagh

Kavanagh's convictions came to light earlier in October when a Weston Town Councillor was alerted by a concerned resident about his criminal past.

They raised the issue with authorities including North Somerset Council - who promptly issued a Red Notice - an urgent notification which warned relevant groups in the area that children, young adults and vulnerable adults should not have contact with Kavanagh - who is also known as Darren Weston.

When contacted by the BBC, the council declined to comment further.

Safeguarding alert

Avon and Somerset Constabulary is aware of the notice.

In a copy passed to the BBC, the notice - which was issued on 3 October - says: "Safeguarding alert.

"We have received information relating to safeguarding concerns about an adult with whom some of you may have had contact.

"He is known as DARREN WESTON or Darren KAVANAGH and he runs Weston Media Works.

"I would strongly advise you that he has no contact with children, young people or vulnerable adults."

Weston Media Works was running until news of the Red Notice emerged. Its signs was removed from its office in Weston-super-Mare in October.

The recently-launched InWeston magazine was also published by Kavanagh.

It has since announced on social media that with "profound regret and sadness" it is closing because "the project is not viable at this time".

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