Latest news with #Simmonds
Scottish Sun
3 hours ago
- Scottish Sun
Showjumper accuses underage girl of faking messages about ‘threesome he had with her and 26-year-old horse rider'
Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) A SHOWJUMPER today accused an underage girl of faking messages about an alleged threesome he made her have with him and a horse rider. Guy Simmonds, 37, and Lauren Jarvis, 26, are accused of targeting the girl despite knowing she was under 16. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 4 Lauren Jarvis allegedly had a threesome with a teenage girl Credit: WNS 4 Guy Simmonds is accused of abusing the girl in a horsebox Credit: WNS Equestrian boss Simmonds called himself "daddy" in messages to the youngster and would abuse her while his girlfriend was away, jurors heard. Cardiff Crown Court heard that in January 2024, he messaged fellow rider Jarvis to organise a threesome at her home - asking when he should "pop over". Simmonds then allegedly text the girl to inform her of the plan, telling her: "You will both do what daddy says." The girl told the court Simmonds got her and Jarvis to "do stuff" with each other before he had sex with both of them. He today claimed the girl had lied about the encounter and accused her of creating bogus WhatsApp conversations after he rejected her. Simmonds suggested to jurors she may have used a "pranking' app to create the messages or even messaged herself from another device while using his name. He added: 'I believe the messages to be fake.' Jurors heard previously Simmonds messaged Jarvis after the alleged threesome to say: "You both loved that haha". Jarvis then replied: "Yeah, you missed round two" with a wink emoji. They later hatched a "pact of silence" when they got wind that the girl was talking about the alleged threesome, the court heard. Simmonds text Jarvis, saying: "Hey, I have a feeling that [name of alleged victim] has said about us. "If anyone asks for sake of both of us nothing ever happened that night xx." Jarvis replied: "Hey, who's she told? Oh god has she really, what's she trying to do, make our lives hell? Of course I will xx." The messages also showed Simmonds messaged Jarvis before the encounter, saying: "I don't want to turn up at the same time that her mum drops her off." But he claimed today he only sent the text as he was "cheating" and knew the girl and her mum knew his partner. Simmonds also told the court the girl had previously made him and his partner feel 'uncomfortable' by using 'inappropriate' language about sex. He said: 'There were rumours that she was telling people that I had been trying it on with her. I was worried. 'The horse world is very small. I wanted to keep my reputation. She was a very volatile person.' Simmonds ran a riding school that offered "showjumping horse production and sales, coaching and schooling" in the village of Undy in Wales. He added the girl on Facebook and told her "thanks for accepting" before being told her age, it is said. The experienced showjumper would allegedly regularly take the girl into a horsebox to sexually abuse her while they were alone at the stables. Jurors heard that at one point, this was happening every couple of days when Simmonds' girlfriend was away. The alarm was raised when the girl told her dad what had allegedly happened and he alerted police. In her police interview, the girl said she felt she could not just walk away because she was scared Simmonds would "hurt me". She added: "I wasn't smiling and stuff when this was going on. If you looked at my face you could tell there was fear." The girl claimed there was one occasion where Simmonds took out his phone and allegedly began filming her. She told police he had a "little smirk on his face", the court heard. Simmonds later dumped his mobile in a bin at a Tesco just days before he was arrested for alleged sexual contact with a child. He denied he was attempting to destroy evidence - and claimed the phone was broken when he was quizzed by police. The court heard he also burned or threw away a mattress from his horse box where he is accused of repeatedly having sex with the victim. Simmonds told police he did not have any form of sexual contact with the victim. He also claimed any messages about a threesome were "banter and a wind up." Simmonds denies six counts of sexual activity with a child, while Jarvis has pleaded not guilty to one charge of sexual activity with a child. The trial continues. 4 Jarvis allegedly entered into a 'pact of silence' with Simmonds Credit: WNS
The Irish Sun
4 hours ago
- The Irish Sun
Showjumper accuses underage girl of faking messages about ‘threesome he had with her and 26-year-old horse rider'
A SHOWJUMPER today accused an underage girl of faking messages about an alleged threesome he made her have with him and a horse rider. Guy Simmonds, 37, and Lauren Jarvis, 26, are accused of targeting the girl despite knowing she was under 16. 4 Lauren Jarvis allegedly had a threesome with a teenage girl Credit: WNS 4 Guy Simmonds is accused of abusing the girl in a horsebox Credit: WNS Equestrian boss Simmonds called himself "daddy" in messages to the youngster and would abuse her while his girlfriend was away, jurors heard. Cardiff Crown Court heard that in January 2024, he messaged fellow rider Jarvis to organise a threesome at her home - asking when he should "pop over". Simmonds then allegedly text the girl to inform her of the plan, telling her: "You will both do what daddy says." The girl told the court Simmonds got her and Jarvis to "do stuff" with each other before he had sex with both of them. Read more news He today claimed the girl had lied about the encounter and accused her of creating bogus WhatsApp conversations after he rejected her. Simmonds suggested to jurors she may have used a "pranking' app to create the messages or even messaged herself from another device while using his name. He added: 'I believe the messages to be fake.' Jurors heard previously Simmonds messaged Jarvis after the alleged threesome to say: "You both loved that haha". Most read in The Sun Jarvis then replied: "Yeah, you missed round two" with a wink emoji. They later hatched a "pact of silence" when they got wind that the girl was talking about the alleged threesome, the court heard. Simmonds text Jarvis, saying: "Hey, I have a feeling that [name of alleged victim] has said about us. "If anyone asks for sake of both of us nothing ever happened that night xx." Jarvis replied: "Hey, who's she told? Oh god has she really, what's she trying to do, make our lives hell? Of course I will xx." The messages also showed Simmonds messaged Jarvis before the encounter, saying: "I don't want to turn up at the same time that her mum drops her off." But he claimed today he only sent the text as he was "cheating" and knew the girl and her mum knew his partner. Simmonds also told the court the girl had previously made him and his partner feel 'uncomfortable' by using 'inappropriate' language about sex. He said: 'There were rumours that she was telling people that I had been trying it on with her. I was worried. 'The horse world is very small. I wanted to keep my reputation. She was a very volatile person.' Simmonds ran a riding school that offered "showjumping horse production and sales, coaching and schooling" in the village of Undy in Wales. He added the girl on Facebook and told her "thanks for accepting" before being told her age, it is said. The experienced showjumper would allegedly regularly take the girl into a horsebox to sexually abuse her while they were alone at the stables. Jurors heard that at one point, this was happening every couple of days when Simmonds' girlfriend was away. The alarm was raised when the girl told her dad what had allegedly happened and he alerted police. In her police interview, the girl said she felt she could not just walk away because she was scared Simmonds would "hurt me". She added: "I wasn't smiling and stuff when this was going on. If you looked at my face you could tell there was fear." The girl claimed there was one occasion where Simmonds took out his phone and allegedly began filming her. She told police he had a "little smirk on his face", the court heard. Simmonds later dumped his mobile in a bin at a Tesco just days before he was arrested for alleged sexual contact with a child. He denied he was attempting to destroy evidence - and claimed the phone was broken when he was quizzed by police. The court heard he also burned or threw away a mattress from his horse box where he is accused of repeatedly having sex with the victim. Simmonds told police he did not have any form of sexual contact with the victim. He also claimed any messages about a threesome were "banter and a wind up." Simmonds denies six counts of sexual activity with a child, while Jarvis has pleaded not guilty to one charge of sexual activity with a child. The trial continues. 4 Jarvis allegedly entered into a 'pact of silence' with Simmonds Credit: WNS 4 She has denied the offences Credit: WNS
The Sun
4 hours ago
- The Sun
Showjumper accuses underage girl of faking messages about ‘threesome he had with her and 26-year-old horse rider'
A SHOWJUMPER today accused an underage girl of faking messages about an alleged threesome he made her have with him and a horse rider. Guy Simmonds, 37, and Lauren Jarvis, 26, are accused of targeting the girl despite knowing she was under 16. 4 4 Equestrian boss Simmonds called himself "daddy" in messages to the youngster and would abuse her while his girlfriend was away, jurors heard. Cardiff Crown Court heard that in January 2024, he messaged fellow rider Jarvis to organise a threesome at her home - asking when he should "pop over". Simmonds then allegedly text the girl to inform her of the plan, telling her: "You will both do what daddy says." The girl told the court Simmonds got her and Jarvis to "do stuff" with each other before he had sex with both of them. He today claimed the girl had lied about the encounter and accused her of creating bogus WhatsApp conversations after he rejected her. Simmonds suggested to jurors she may have used a "pranking' app to create the messages or even messaged herself from another device while using his name. He added: 'I believe the messages to be fake.' Jurors heard previously Simmonds messaged Jarvis after the alleged threesome to say: "You both loved that haha". Jarvis then replied: "Yeah, you missed round two" with a wink emoji. They later hatched a "pact of silence" when they got wind that the girl was talking about the alleged threesome, the court heard. Simmonds text Jarvis, saying: "Hey, I have a feeling that [name of alleged victim] has said about us. "If anyone asks for sake of both of us nothing ever happened that night xx." Jarvis replied: "Hey, who's she told? Oh god has she really, what's she trying to do, make our lives hell? Of course I will xx." The messages also showed Simmonds messaged Jarvis before the encounter, saying: "I don't want to turn up at the same time that her mum drops her off." But he claimed today he only sent the text as he was "cheating" and knew the girl and her mum knew his partner. Simmonds also told the court the girl had previously made him and his partner feel 'uncomfortable' by using 'inappropriate' language about sex. He said: 'There were rumours that she was telling people that I had been trying it on with her. I was worried. 'The horse world is very small. I wanted to keep my reputation. She was a very volatile person.' Simmonds ran a riding school that offered "showjumping horse production and sales, coaching and schooling" in the village of Undy in Wales. He added the girl on Facebook and told her "thanks for accepting" before being told her age, it is said. The experienced showjumper would allegedly regularly take the girl into a horsebox to sexually abuse her while they were alone at the stables. Jurors heard that at one point, this was happening every couple of days when Simmonds' girlfriend was away. The alarm was raised when the girl told her dad what had allegedly happened and he alerted police. In her police interview, the girl said she felt she could not just walk away because she was scared Simmonds would "hurt me". She added: "I wasn't smiling and stuff when this was going on. If you looked at my face you could tell there was fear." The girl claimed there was one occasion where Simmonds took out his phone and allegedly began filming her. She told police he had a "little smirk on his face", the court heard. Simmonds later dumped his mobile in a bin at a Tesco just days before he was arrested for alleged sexual contact with a child. He denied he was attempting to destroy evidence - and claimed the phone was broken when he was quizzed by police. The court heard he also burned or threw away a mattress from his horse box where he is accused of repeatedly having sex with the victim. Simmonds told police he did not have any form of sexual contact with the victim. He also claimed any messages about a threesome were "banter and a wind up." Simmonds denies six counts of sexual activity with a child, while Jarvis has pleaded not guilty to one charge of sexual activity with a child. The trial continues. 4
1News
2 days ago
- Business
- 1News
Job cuts as part of Govt's polytech reform necessary
Vocational Education Minister Penny Simmonds says a reduction of 600 roles across different polytechnics is necessary to address unsustainable financial deficits as the Government dismantles Te Pūkenga. Ten polytechnics will be re-established from next year 2026, Simmonds announced last week, with differing fates for six other institutions. Simmonds told Q+A the net job losses were necessary to address unsustainable deficits. "It depends where they're coming from. When you've got institutions that are running $11.3 million deficits, you simply cannot carry on with that," she said. "You look at what's causing those deficits. In the WelTec/Whitireia situation, the arts centre here in the middle of Wellington, they were running at a ratio of one staff member to 5.6 students. No school gets that advantage. ADVERTISEMENT "You've got to have a look at where the staff are going to come from, and in some cases, it's just they shouldn't be operating at that ratio." She confirmed "there would be a reduction this year" of roles at some institutions. "There will be further redundancies." Minister confident changes will prove worth Treasury has previously suggested the reforms could risk repeating past failures, saying plans remained focused on supporting institutions' financial viability, "with no clear evidence of how the needs of learners and employers have been considered". Simmonds responded when read the advice: "Treasury gave a range of advice, which Cabinet looked at along with lots of other advice. "We've got evidence over the last five decades of polytechnics being able to be successful to reflect the needs of industries and their community, and so I relied on the history that we'd seen of polytechnics being able to do that successfully." ADVERTISEMENT Before entering politics, the Vocational Education Minister and National MP served as the chief executive of the Southern Institute of Technology. Treasury officials also posited the reforms could create a financial situation "similar, if not worse, than the situation faced by [educational institutions] pre-Te Pūkenga". Asked about assurances that further bailouts wouldn't be needed, she said the institutions "will be set up in the best possible way that they can be". "They will have their debt addressed. They will have their financial pathway to viability. It's then up to communities to make sure that the right people are in the governance roles and the right people are in the management roles, and that they integrate with the community." Simmonds was also pressed about whether some institutions gaining independence were in worse financial positions than those entering federation. "No, not a worse financial position, no. So, some of them will get to sustainability. They'll get to a surplus. In the time they'll take to get to a surplus, they have reserves that can cover them during that time." Labour says new model will drain regions ADVERTISEMENT In response to the Q+A interview, Labour's education spokesperson Shanan Halbert said, the whole point of Te Pūkenga was to make the polytechnic sector more financially viable and ensure more training opportunities and employment in our regions. "The changes announced today will only return the polytechnic sector to a model that was never financially viable – and the result will be major job losses in local areas." Halbert said the Government "could have simply addressed some of the issues" the existing model to avoid the "uncertainty this has had on staff and students". The changes to amalgamate polytechnics and institutes of technology were introduced by the previous Labour government. In her interview, Simmonds was also asked about delays to a ban on single-use plastics, how she had managed her environment portfolio, and on Gore's recent tap water issues. For the full interview, watch the video above Q+A with Jack Tame is made with the support of New Zealand On Air
Otago Daily Times
4 days ago
- Business
- Otago Daily Times
Simmonds ignored advice in Otago Polytech decision
Penny Simmonds went against early advice by allowing Southern Institute of Technology to stand alone and grouping Otago Polytechnic with a pair of North Island-based institutions, it can be revealed. Advice to the vocational education minister released under the Official Information Act showed the decision to not allow Otago Polytechnic to stand alone was made despite it being assessed as "financially viable" along with six other institutions. The advisers from a special vocational education working group gave Ms Simmonds the option of all seven viable institutions - including SIT and Otago Polytechnic standing alone - but recommended the pair be linked together as part of three regional groupings. Otago Polytechnic and SIT should also be grouped with the Open Polytechnic. Ms Simmonds went on to ignore that advice and linked Otago Polytechnic with Palmerston North-based Universal College of Learning (UCOL) and Lower Hutt-based Open Polytechnic; and approved SIT, which she was formerly the chief executive of for 20 years, standing alone. Green MP Francisco Hernandez said the situation was a mess that benefited no-one in vocational education. "Advice shows that Otago Polytech was considered 'viable', even prior to the extensive and disruptive cuts that Otago was forced to undertake thanks to the lack of support." Mr Hernandez said Ms Simmonds must release the advice proactively "so we can examine the basis for the decision making". Otago Polytechnic executive director Dr Megan Pōtiki saw the advisory group's recommendations this week. "This only adds to our confusion about the decision announced last Monday. "In none of the four options shortlisted by the advisory group was Otago Polytechnic listed as a 'non-viable' entity. "We are deeply concerned that Otago Polytechnic has been unfairly singled out, in a decision which appears to have favoured some organisations for reasons other than financial viability." Dr Pōtiki said she was pleased the option of merging Otago Polytechnic and SIT was not adopted. "Both organisations have long and proud histories of providing quality tertiary education in our respective regions, but we have clear differences in our programme strengths and styles of operations. "However, we are still looking forward to a close and collaborative relationship with our closest neighbour going forward." Dr Pōtiki said Otago Polytechnic should be in surplus by the end of the year. "We are again asking the minister to release the criteria she used for making these decisions, and to clearly communicate why Otago Polytechnic was singled out to be moved out of the 'viable' category and included as part of a federation." Ms Simmonds said the debt and cash reserves of both SIT and Otago Polytechnic when they went into Te Pūkenga contributed to the decision. Otago Polytechnic had $16.1 million debt and $1.3 million in cash reserves, SIT had no debt and $40.1 million in cash reserves, of which $15.6 million were ring-fenced. "The paper you are referring to is an early piece of advice and there were several updates made. Otago Polytechnic is one of the 10 institutions being re-established and will stand alone within the new federation of polytechnics. "It was not grouped with SIT or the Open Polytechnic in a combined entity because the final decision adopted the proposed federation model rather than other options proposed during consultation."
