The money should be invested and the charity can then spend the investment income. Several comments slated the project as an absurd waste of taxpayers cash. activities including quality assesment are part of his Also cc'd in were: Jackie Westlake, Andy Culham, Anita Walker, Bryan Mulhern, Cindy Davis, Tom Gates, David Simmons, Jane Hawkins, John Coulter, Mick Gates and Shiel Campbell. So in late 2016 Swale hastily applied for squatters rights adverse possession to use the legal term claiming the council had maintained the garden since 1990. So any. KCC did not own the land, it was controlled by the original deed. By the early 1980s, KCC assumed they owned the site. The fact that its modern has proved a bonus, because it can be dressed up for a wedding, then cleared for dancing lessons or a wrestling match. His early career was spent as a teacher and, later, as a teacher trainer. the client. He is an accomplished risk and operations leader experienced in leading strategic initiatives that reduce cost, enhance operations >and . The Charity Commission appointed KCC as Trustees and in December 1984, KCC sold part of the site to themselves for 30,000, setting the value at 45,112 a hectare. The cost of building was 166,000, leaving a surplus of 40,000. Formerly Deputy When challenged, the officer said he did not need a search warrant as he had made an arrest. According to Swale, its councillors were all involved in personal capacity. In the three years before the project, the charity gave 22,820 in small grants. He felt Faversham was his . And worse. In what looks like spite, Swale rejected them both. . Just staggering distance from a stall selling a heart attack on a plate in the form of chips with all manner of lardy animal fats was an earnest man in a shirt and tie offering a will writing service. He asked Hilary Riva and a number of others to get involved. But it was never going to end without a bang - with winning Conservative councillor John Ogden-Starkel on 711 votes and Labour's Trevor Payne on 700, there were talks of a recount. What's for dinner? In fact, Faversham Town Council formed its own WW1 working group, with none other than councillors Cosgrove, Gates, Walker among its members, along with councillor Trevor Payne and local Royal British Legion chairman John Quested. He has In 2017 and 2018, when the charity started making substantial donations to the War Memorial it spent 10,214 more than it earned in income. Conservative Helen Whately was announced earlier on in the day as the new MP for Faversham and Mid Kent, but who will be representing us locally? Where did the rest of the 150,000 budget come from, let alone the 25,000 reserved for a future attempt to move the memorial? Users, Updating complete But over time the garden, once used to grow veg for hospital patients, became neglected and overgrown. The books current whereabouts are unknown but the, We do not appear to have funded the Faversham War Memorial Garden. We must not let this continue.. Theres so much we want to ask you. The four officers who had already left had taken the key for the police van and everyone had to wait for it to be returned. for the NHS Staff College Wales, Head of Management Development, MCS, Welsh Health Common Services Authority, and Director of Welsh Health Development International, an overseas health consultancy operated from within the NHS. Nobody did. This type of project would not fit under our funding criteria. In 1948, the Poor Laws were finally abolished. but there is still room to expand The Alexander Centre. contracted to us; sometimes we have contracted to them. This is accounted for as money set aside to future projects. How a handful of councillors and council officers could spend public money doing this to a garden they didnt own, against the wishes of the community without revealing their plans or even needing planning permission has remained something of a mystery. Mike Cosgrove - @mikecosgrove S.E London linktr.ee/mikecosgrove SME consultant | Event-driven & value trader | Promoting a market-based redistribution of wealth & employee stock schemes | Shareholder activist Mike Cosgrove - @Michael10449114 Liverpool, England mike cosgrove - @mikecosgrove7 Faversham Kent travel writer,film goer and grass cutter in conjunction with Mid Glamorgan Careers negotiation. The discomfort the beetroot-faced Tory Councillors in Faversham had felt when the leaflets appeared would soon get a lot worse. . Its maintenance budget for 2018/19 is just 31.59, according to Swale Borough Council. This time there were 74 letters and emails objecting. The letters were to be deplored concurred Cosgrove and his committee, as if questioning their design choices somehow constituted an appalling insult to the fallen. View Mike Cosgrove results including current phone number, address, relatives, background check report, and property record with Whitepages. Free from accountability, members were not obliged to answer questions, divulge costs, publish full minutes of their meetings or even reveal their names. The attics, where their servants would have slept, have barely been touched in over 100 years. How much more? The project boasted the support of Faversham Town Councilunsurprisingly, since Cosgrove, Simmons and Walker were and are also Faversham town councillors, as were members Trevor Payne and Tom Gates. Our Education Directory has everything you could possibly need! View the profiles of people named Mike Cosgrove. Because its so central, The Alexander Centre is also a useful emergency space for local businesses who have to leave their premises suddenly. British areas, 2000 NCVCCO/The Countryside Agency (JDW), Researched and They called themselves a community led group but, in reality, they were a committee dominated by Conservative councillors and council officers. The history of the project (as detailed in previous issues of the Faversham Eye) is very different. At this moment, Monty Python became Keystone Kops. Value Between 1973 and 1988, he was a health service manager in the Nottingham, Derby, and Reading areas. It had remained unregistered for more than 40 years. She is a Visiting Lecturer at Nottingham University. 2001 (MNW), Wrote Think . for the Countryside Agency. designed and delivered many organisation, team and recruitment and selection, performance management, together with serious incident enquiries. Sonot exactly a grass-roots community organisation. Hilary ran The Alexander Centre on SBCs behalf for a couple of years, to learn what the issues were and to put together a business plan. So far, he hasnt replied once. . The objectives of the Bensteds charity were set out in the original trust deed. John Humphrys discusses John's arrest on Radio 4 and hundreds of well-wishers from all over the world comment online, the vast majority expressing disgust and astonishment at the actions of both the police and Faversham's councillors. Trying to find the right nursery, school, college, university or training provider in Kent or Medway? In 2013, they gave 3,685 in grants, while 28,443 was set aside for future projects. current), Wrote Meeting the Eight years ago, however, a group of local people began tidying the site, planting trees and fruit bushes, seeds and bulbs. The Council is shorthand for a number of civic upheavals. Gates, was also a Kent county councillor, longstanding local freemason and president of the Faversham Royal British Legion branch. Support Grant Scheme, Family Policy Unit, Home . It is no secret our local councillors were behind John's arrest. They spent ,2000 of this the following year. But it turned out the NHS didnt own the garden either. As well as cash, Cosgroves team needed what they termed community buy-in. Agreement - 1994. Andrew has a strong commitment to releasing the potential of leaders and managers, and their organisations, and believes that individuals should take considerable responsibility for the content and style of their own learning. Published by MHNA This fuzzy, informal, unofficial status meant Cosgroves war memorial committee could remain largely exempt from scrutiny while still enjoying council funding, support staff and the use of council premises. reorganisation; developing strategic responses to change, "Driving across England to Shripshire (sic), seeing the awful creep of new housing development across the countryside. But it was too late. Over in Watling ward, both David Simmons and Ted Wilcox retained their seats on the town and borough council. Young Persons Act 2001, Isle of Man [with Janet and Mike What rankles with the Bensteds Trustees is this: KCC sold a chunk of the land to themselves in a rising market at a rate of 45,112 a hectare. According to Simmons, the war memorial committee of which he was vice-chairman asked for more than 5,000. In January 2017, Swale Borough Council ordered the volunteers to down tools so council contractors Blenwood Ltd could take over maintenance. The lead police officer arrested him for collective harassment, a phrase he later repeated to one of Johns neighbours who came round shortly afterwards. Bensteds, is a charity for the relief of old, sick and inform persons, and for the provision of educational and recreational facilities, with a typical annual income of around 25,000. The Bensteds Chairman, Andrew Osborne, dismisses any criticism of the War Memorial. Bensteds charity was set up to help local residents. Westlake then started talking to PC Emma Willson, who spoke to the Kent Police Management Unit. papers and run management courses and seminars in many The books current whereabouts are unknown but the Faversham Eye has photographs of every page. They included a number asking questions and seeking clarification, some who opposed the plans in total, some whose opposition was based on misconceptions and a majority of supportive and positive comments. Colin Sharpe worked at the East Kent Packers specialising in fruit. Once they got to the station, the police behaviour became even more bizarre. Institute of Her music room had musical notes in the cornicing and busts of musicians on pedestals. Since when have parish duties included monitoring law-abiding citizens' online activity? The Alexander Centre Trust (TACT) was set up, chaired by Hilary Riva. Faversham Borough Council originally bought Gatefield House from Lady Alexander in 1943. He was resident in the property and joined the Faversham Society. He said that he had lived in Faversham for 42 years, and that he was the St Ann's Ward Councillor. anti-poverty strategy; rural child protection And the Barley Mow gift shop has had to leave Court Street temporarily while repairs are carried out. Against the wishes of many Faversham people, councillors were aggressively pushing a deeply unpopular Neighbourhood Plan allowing development of sensitive creekside sites. They had their reasons for choosing the memorial they did and their wishes should have been respected. The plan was first submitted to the Local Plan forum of the . Facilitative and He asked Hilary Riva and a number of others to get involved. Reaching We have been overwhelmed by the heartwarming response from many residents across Faversham.. of Man Children and senior managers. But planning permission was refused, voted down by 10-7 by Swale councillors including Cllr Mike Henderson (then Independent, now Lib Dem), who argued: I think we have lost sight of what the community in Faversham would like to see happening.. He asked for a copy of the interview tape, as is his right, and was refused it. The peoples voice was clear. Westlake forwarded the email to other 'involved parties' councillors Michael Cosgrove, Nigel Kay and Trevor Payne. . Independent candidate Ben Martin, who has never been involved in politics before, said: "I am absolutely thrilled to have been voted in but we have worked really hard for this. Publishers). Opportunity: Developing Practice through Training Children Act TACT involved a number of experts, many of whom gave their time on a voluntary basis. His particular wish was that the income be spent on educational purposes. Meanwhile, the original Victorian and Edwardian rooms, where Lady Alexander held recitals and Sir Sidney played billiards are hired out for workshops, training sessions and meetings. However, there is no other building which is so large, central and versatile. Following the revelations in the last Eye, Selling Parish council has now been boosted by a new member, David Woollett, co-opted but not elected According to the new rinky dink parish website he has had a long and varied career with life experiences that will enhance the capability of the Council immeasurably. Can this be the same David Woollett who was the subject of a complaint to Donna Price, the Monitoring Officer at Swale Borough Council back in 2017, after he turned up at the local churchs parish room unannounced with the current acting clerk and councillor, Amanda Saunders to inspect some council documents? In For many years Cottage Hospital staff, patients and their visitors have used the garden when weather conditions permit., Simmons continued: The donation was made with the restriction that it must be used to make the new pathway fully disabled access compliant using non slip materials. At the next meeting he reported a renewed campaign from objectors. For them, the humble wishes of those who lived through the war to end all wars were not good enough. Ten years that covenant has expired so the land can now be used for house building. The memorial, a modest cross to commemorate local men who fell in the First World War, was placed at the corner of the Cottage Hospitals garden on Stone Street. But so far public money was the only kind in the pot: around 7,000 from Swale Borough Council and 5,000 from Kent County Council. On first glance, it looks more like an investment trust. Although the tiny hexagon of land the memorial cross stood on belonged to Swale Borough Council, the garden didnt. He also argues that the opposition to the memorial was personal and came "from critics who did not like some of the key Trustees involved.". Children and This was Not all members were councillors or council employees however. . Sector, NCVCCO, 1996 (JDW) October, 2001. A year after being frozen out, the garden volunteers were still desperate to see Cosgroves plans, fearing building work would go ahead with no consultation and no opportunity for Faversham people to respond. Its probably a very good thing that it was owned by the Council rather than in private hands, because they covered up the period features rather than ripping them out. Negotiation for It is far from clear what authority it had to evict the community gardeners. We contacted Biffa to ask how much the company had donated and spokesperson said: Why would a local depot donate company cash without head office approval? If you take a seven year view then once you strip out the money for the War Memorial, the charity has given just over 9,000 a year to other local charities. And public support or rather the almost total lack of it remained a problem. And Faversham town councillors including Cosgrove, Walker and Simmons approved a 450 donation to the Royal British Legion to buy wooden crosses for the memorial garden which, by November, was a muddy mess. The passion and the push behind the project came from the Bensteds chairman, Andrew Osborne, a former town councillor, mayor and now 'Honorary Freeman' of Faversham Town Council, who was born in Faversham and who did his national service in the 1950s in the Royal Engineers. That is not the case. parts of the United Yes, you did read that correctly. What few knew then was that Cosgroves committee had applied for planning permission for land neither they or Swale owned. Facebook gives people the power to share and makes the world more open and connected. edited, the London Borough of Enfield's first The night that the police decided to take no further action against John Wellard, Councillor (now Mayor) Trevor Abram emailed Nigel Kay saying: there is also a constant daily diatribe of acrimonious accusations against the actions of the Council in social media, which allowed to continue unchallenged could easily cost any of us our seats on May 7. They were in need of repair but were mainly intact. The current asset position of the charity was further boosted last year. Social Services Professionals (Jessica Kingsley The lead officer did not produce the necessary paperwork, which would normally be best practice. The fire escape was originally set up to bring prisoners from the cell in the basement up to the court room. Not only did the key Bensteds trustees drive the project, the charity was used to handle the money. Organisations, 2000 (MNW, with Keith Fletcher), Researched and informal PC Willson's emails also refer to a report from councillor Mike Cosgrove of 'an incident regarding Mr Wellard approaching him in Court Street and waiving (sic) in his face'. the implications for staff recruitment and retention the Over time the garden, once used to grow veg for hospital patients, became neglected and overgrown budget from. 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