FOLLOWING the trial of a former night manager at a nursing home in Abergavenny found guilty of ill-treating two residents, there has been overwhelming support for the establishment.

Howard Griffiths, 53, of Wordsworth Close, Ebbw Vale was night manager at Rozelle Care Home and was found guilty of two counts of ill treating patients and not guilty of a remaining eight.

He denied ten charges of ill-treating a person without capacity, which related to elderly residents in his care, who were suffering from conditions such as dementia, Alzheimer's and schizophrenia between April 2007 and August 2009.

After a seven day trial at Newport Crown Court, the jury returned its verdict.

Since the case was brought to light in The Abergavenny Chronicle, staff at the home say the support from the residents' families has been enormous.

Manager Alison Hickman said, "We have had full support. No one has removed their relatives from our home and since it's all come out in the Press, families have come to us saying they give us their full support to come through this.

Mrs Hickman told The Chronicle how the incident "devastated" herself, staff and proprietor Pat Davies.

She said, "We received a verbal complaint on a Saturday evening in August last year and we stopped Howard Griffiths from working immediately. He was then formally suspended. In line with the home's policy, the complaint was taken to the police and they led an investigation.

"He was dismissed from Rozelle in October.

"During all this we have had full support from all our families and residents. 

"Pat and myself were devastated that something like this happened at Rozelle. There are now new procedures in place to try and prevent something like this from ever happening again.

"Rozelle has been running for 24 years and we hope to continue doing so in the future."

•Griffiths will be sentenced at Newport Crown Court on Monday, August 16.