Reform UK backs vigilante group reported to police over calls to expose addresses of migrants
Emily Price
A Reform UK branch has thrown its support behind a vigilante group that was reported to police after it called for members of the public to disclose the addresses of refugees and asylum seekers living in Caerphilly.
All male anti-immigration group “Welsh Valley Child Protectors” began operating in August and quickly organised a poorly attended demonstration in Bedwas over unfounded fears that a local Premier Inn would be used to house asylum seekers.
Whitbread, the firm that owns Premier Inn, said these rumours were “categorically” false.
Images of the demonstration showed protesters carrying Welsh flags and drinking from cans of beer while walking through the streets of Caerphilly.
Organiser Joshua Edwards said he had become one of driving forces behind the group because he was concerned that “illegal immigrants” were being housed “in droves” in the county.
In a post published to his group’s public Facebook page, he said his aim was to “protect women and children” by addressing the “invasion of our lands with an iron fist”.
In a video posted online, in which Edwards appeared to be driving while speaking to the camera, he called on members of his group to send him the addresses of properties where migrants could be living.
Later in the video, Edwards asked members to reveal the addresses of suspected white British paedophiles too, however he added that his “main concern” was the “masses of unvetted people” being “dumped” in Caerphilly.
In another video, Edwards criticised the number of Ukrainian refugees living in Caerphilly, saying he would place those who returned to Ukraine to visit family in the “same category” as people arriving on small boats, adding that Ukrainians that chose to visit relatives should be “deported”.
“If you have claimed asylum to leave a war torn country and you go back, in my opinion, you should stay there,” he said.
Following Edwards’ call for the addresses of migrants, a commenter using the name “Barry J” published a post revealing the location a block of flats in the county where he claimed he had seen 15 people who “definitely weren’t British”.
Another commentator responded saying residents at the property “don’t come out till [sic] it’s dark” adding that this behaviour was “embedded in them” because it’s so hot during the day in the Middle East.
Edwards commented on the post promising he would “have a look into” the location over the next couple of days.
He tagged another of the group’s organisers, Ross Perkins, who responded saying “on it” adding an emergency light emoji.
Edwards responded to this saying: “I’ll go up tomorrow.”
Other posts on the page showed that Edwards and another of the group’s organisers Mark Passmore were visited by police officers last week ahead the Bedwas protest.
Edwards acknowledged that the demonstration had faced “pushback” from some members of the public who had branded Welsh Valley Child Protectors “racist”.
Although the group claims it is not affiliated with Reform UK, it’s Facebook page was created on August 26, the day after Reform’s official Blaenau Gwent Caerphilly Rhymney branch published an AI image of a queue of Black people with a caption claiming they were receiving social housing ahead of local people in Caerphilly.
The branch claimed that it had found out via Freedom of Information requests that 18 refugees had been placed in social housing by Caerphilly Council in the last three years.
Although the information appeared to relate to people who had been granted official refugee status, the page published a synthetic image of 24 “asylum seekers” queuing on a housing estate, with a Black man at the front of the line holding out his hand.
Many commentators assumed the image was real.
Asylum seekers still waiting for a decision on their asylum claim cannot access social housing or join social housing waiting lists.
The post quickly went viral, and Reform’s Blaenau Gwent, Caerphilly and Rhymney branch blocked and deleted comments from users who raised concerns that it could inflame community tensions and put refugees at risk.
Last week, the branch appeared to claim credit for the creation of the Welsh Valley Child Protectors group.
Sharing an image of the Bedwas protest on Facebook, the branch said the group had been established after it had publicised the number of refugees living in Caerphilly.
Calls have now been made for Caerphilly Council to issue displaced people with clear guidance on what to do if they are approached, followed, identified online, or if their home address is discussed or shared on social media.
It is understood that the local authority is aware of these calls and the concerns for the safety of refugees and asylum seekers in the area and are taking “necessary steps”.
Gwent Police confirmed they had received a call about the groups actions from a member of the public, adding: “We will be reviewing the information they have passed on”.
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What would these flowers think when their own individual home addresses are shared online for everyone to see?
It’s concerning that the powers that be (police and local authority) are being reactive and not proactive. Surely the post by Reform’s Blaenau Gwent, Caerphilly and Rhymney branch crosses a line as what they have published is clearly a lie intended to stir up racial hatred? As for the Welsh Valley Child Protectors , they sound very much like they could be associated to those other morons in the Voice of Wales aligned group Public Child Protection Wales who made right chumps of themselves when they opposed the teaching of comprehensive age appropriate sex education as part of the mandatory curiculum,… Read more »
Small as this aled up Bedwas crew are, it is reasonable to presume that 41% of their number, like the Epping mob, are abusers themselves.
It should be made categorically clear to this group in question that they are not wanted in Cymru.
From chasing out Moseley’s Fascists to opposing South African Rugby teams during Apartheid is what Cymru is all about.Cymru must never ever become a haven for Fascists.
Yes and they can stop dragging our national flag through their faecal mess too.
Child protection is hilarious. they are targetting families with kids and are backed by those either on the Epstein list or wishing they was. These scum must be exposed, we do not accept fasiscm, its totally against our nature her in Cymru.
If the people from their localities were to have a ten minute look at their social media content, it would be rather obvious why these men could pose a risk to their communities.
They’re spreading like a cancer through Cymru and the spread needs to be stopped
Note how Reform always goes after the marginalised and powerless whilst also claiming, in perpetuity, to resent the political establishment, which goes after the marginalised and powerless on a continuous basis.
I can’t pretend not to have a kind of schadenfreude – or should that be zloradstvo – at them tanking in the polls of late, down to an average 23.6% according to Pollcheck. I am, however, a bit annoyed that the wheels are falling off this soon rather than, say 9-12 months before the next general election, to maximise loss of internal morale.
A Gaggle of Geese
A Herd of Cows
A Vomit of Reform Voters.
Check their hard drives.
Just check some of their members social media accounts (most are completely open), there’s some very telling information there.
I don’t use Facebook etc. (don’t like the way they work and scrape data). Get booted off unless I sign up.
Political cancer Reform UK are basically agent provocateurs who should never be allowed anywhere near power.
According to several police forces, 41% of those arrested in connection with the 2024 immigration riots had been reported to the authorities for various types of domestic abuse. I wonder if any of these have!
There are 3 well known names from the valleys in their group that have non molestation orders from the family court that are currently active and one from that group that has been removed from a residential property for a violent disturbance.
A short social media search will reveal a few other little gems that would definitely be of interest.
Doing a little bit of Facebook stalking, many of that group are also freinds with people who are registered as directors of No Cymru based in an office in Cardiff.
So are they protecting Cymru, or trying to purposely cause problems?
Their names pop up continuously and regularly on various hate groups, and also when you google a few names, there are one or two interesting mentions in local papers.
What has become of the valkeys where these types are allowed to flourish? Not long ago Welsh nans would have run them off the estates.