Gareth Morris Author & Editor

Gareth Morris was born in the mining village of Senghenydd in South Wales. He was the youngest of seven surviving siblings and saw the hardships of the 1950s in the mining community during that time. They talk of 'the good old days', but Gareth remembers that was far from the truth. Holidays or luxuries were only things you could dream of, but what the village did have was a community spirit. Gareth left school in June 1963, aged 15, and started work in a local engineering company. During his time in the engineering company Gareth was able to complete an apprenticeship as a fabricator welder. He stayed there until 1971 when he left to join the Prison Service. Joining the Prison Service was the start of a journey that saw him spend the next 42 years working in the prison environment. Although leaving school with a basic education, Gareth was to strive to learn and be as best as he could in whatever he set out to achieve. In 1981 Gareth emigrated to Australia to join the Prison Service in Western Australia. During his working experience in Western Australia Gareth was to achieve a great deal, with some of his Operational Compliance reports being submitted to the State Parliament of Western Australia. Gareth went on to achieve the distinction of being the only external person to attend the Western Australia Police Academy, successfully completing the Prosecution Officer's course, which led him to prosecute prison-related offences in open court. He also became a member of the Prison Officers' Appeal Tribunal that sat in the District Court. In 1997 Gareth's wife of 26 years was to pass away due to complications as a result of breast cancer.