Hospital ward ‘not named after Picton’
A CARMARTHEN hospital is moving to reassure its patients and staff that one of its wards is not named after controversial Sir Thomas Picton.
Glangwili Hospital is home to Picton Ward, a name that has made headlines in Wales over the past 10 days.
There have been calls for numerous commemorations to Sir Thomas Picton to be removed due to his treatment of others in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, following the removal of a statue of slave owner Edward Colston in Bristol on June 7.
Among these calls for action is a petition asking for Picton Monument in Carmarthen to be removed or renamed, and for a statue of Picton to be removed from City Hall in Cardiff.
In Haverfordwest, meanwhile, a property owner has removed a blue plaque commemorating Picton – who died at the battle of Waterloo in 1815 – over safety fears. This had led to questions about other things in Wales that might have been named after Picton and other controversial historical figures.
But health bosses at Glangwili Hospital have moved to reassure patients and staff about its Picton Ward, saying they want to “avoid any confusion” over the naming.
The ward is actually named after Picton Castle – the medieval castle which, despite being near Sir Thomas Picton’s hometown of Haverfordwest, is nothing to do with the former governor of Trinidad who once tortured a teenage girl accused of stealing.
In fact, Picton Castle was named in the 13th Century – about 500 years before Sir Thomas Picton was born – and it is thought the name comes from a combination of the old English words for hill and settlement.
“There are no plans to rename Picton Ward, but we will be providing information to make clear to staff and patients the historical context around how the ward was named,” a spokesman for Hywel Dda University Health Board said. “We recognise that racial equality is an issue that affects not only our members of staff and NHS workers across Wales, but also our communities and those who use our services.
“To avoid any confusion, the health board wants to clarify that Picton Ward in Glangwili Hospital was named after Picton Castle, located in our beautiful Pembrokeshire countryside. We have two other hospital wards within our women and children’s services directorate that are also named after castles; Dinefwr Ward and
Cilgerran Ward are both named after castles in Carmarthenshire and Ceredigion.”
Steve Moore, chief executive of the health board, said: “It’s always been important to work to eradicate racism and inequality, and as an organisation we are committed to diversity, inclusion and making sure that everyone feels welcome and can be themselves without fear of discrimination.
“Whilst we have made clear commitments through our Strategic Equality Plan and objectives we recognise that we still have work to do to turn our aspirations into reality.”
The petition launched last week to remove or rename Picton Monument on the outskirts of Carmarthen town centre has now been signed almost 14,000 times.
It will be passed to Carmarthenshire Council, which will discuss the matter in the council chamber in due course.