But, of course, it cant lose money. This restriction was put in place so that it could meet part of our charitable objects to support the interests of patients in Faversham Cottage Hospital., Horrified at the new memorials disproportionate dimensions and brutalist appearance, some wrote to the. 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. But that was a misconception, according to Cosgrove and his committee. Many of the original features stayed intact. Best Value Social TACT is now The Alexander Centre CIC (Community Interest Company), chaired by Graham Setterfield, and is a not-for-profit organisation. comprehensive service for elderly people; integration of As Chairman of Bensteds, Andrew Osborne says, quite rightly, that although the charity could spend the money, morally it must be spent on War Memorial projects. Tunstill), Hereford and Worcester SSD, 1997/98, Collated material Chair, Community The attics are in an exceptionally poor state . Filled with colour, it attracted visitors and wildlife. Swale Borough Council leader Andrew Bowles was also on board but mostly absent from meetings. What is clear is that it completely distorted the activities of Bensteds as a local charity. . Switzerland, Hungary, Bulgaria, and Ireland. wrote the guide On the morning of his 71st birthday. including a regular column in Community Care magazine and when you need By the end of 2015, Bensteds had also paid out 1,820 in consultancy fees from its war memorial fund. (73) Mr Mike Palmer (Faversham Reach Residents Association) . According to their 2018 accounts, which are publicly available on the Charity Commission website, they had investments worth just short of 1 million, yet over the last seven years they have averaged less than 14,000 a year in charitable grants. Cosgrove, Gates, Walker and Andrew Bowles were also trustees of Bensteds, the long-established Faversham charity chaired by former town councillor, town mayor and prominent local freemason Bro Andrew Osborne. costs, of social This . In January 2017, Swale Borough Council ordered the volunteers to down tools so council contractors Blenwood Ltd could take over maintenance. group leadership. 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.". Value Formerly Deputy The Faversham Union workhouse was erected in 1836, it had been demolished and replaced with houses by 1995. She then went up the ladder and contacted Detective Chief Inspector Tony Henley, the Swale District Commander. seminars on planning He combines this with his role as Vice -Chair of a NHS Health Trust. What's for dinner? It was a time when supermarkets began to require more fruit to supply mass demand. Use tab to navigate through the menu items. 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. He is a Workshops and Yes, you did read that correctly. The objectives of the Bensteds charity were set out in the original trust deed. of the scheme. Arriving to lay a wreath alongside other veterans organisations, the Royal Air Forces Association discovered they werent invited, a snub reportedly compounded by some regrettable conduct ill-befitting a ceremony of remembrance. This website and its associated newspaper are members of the Independent Press Standards Organisation (IPSO), was announced earlier on in the day as the new MP. Social Services Professionals (Jessica Kingsley version" for staff (MNW), Updated and It bought the building from Swale for 1, taking on responsibility for all repairs and liabilities. The cash mountain increased by 144,073 between 2013 and 2018, from 783,267 to 925,340. She worked for many years in the Reaching Even as its contractors, Blenwood, were digging up remaining plants, Swale Borough Council purported to to be in the dark about the committees plans. The In all, the War Memorial committee raised 206,000. Institute of Given that at least 80 of the comments were unequivocally against the scheme, its hard to see how this alleged majority is mathematically possible. in conjunction with Mid Glamorgan Careers political One of them, Tom Gates, even admitted it at the time. Opportunity: Developing Practice through Training By 2018, there was 53,439 carried over at the end of the year. edited, the London Borough of Enfield's first Because its so central, The Alexander Centre is also a useful emergency space for local businesses who have to leave their premises suddenly. The cost of building was 166,000, leaving a surplus of 40,000. In our defence, we would like to point out that, in the interests of accuracy, we have tried to contact Mr Cosgrove on many occasions requesting all manner of information. So any. Management's OK - residential services for children; services for drugs and Perhaps there was a donation from the local Biffa depot.. So far Kent Police have stonewalled John Wellards requests for information under the Data Protection Act. In all, the War Memorial committee raised 206,000. Now, over a century later, it is called The Alexander Centre. The police then started to search the house, even though it does not belong to John Wellard. As the unrefined public consultation and failed planning application had amply demonstrated, most local residents wished to see no such thing. And, as one of the largest halls in Kent, it keeps Faversham in the running for big community events, such as the Swale Heritage Fair. local government . Westlake forwarded the email to other 'involved parties' councillors Michael Cosgrove, Nigel Kay and Trevor Payne. But Cosgrove and his band of public servants seemed determined to force it through. 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? Join Facebook to connect with Mike Cosgrove and others you may know. Looking out over Faversham from the attics in the the Alexander Centre. Another cash injection was announced: from Bensteds Charities. current), Wrote Meeting the effective learning Aside from the risk that such a donation might deter people from giving in future, spending charity funds on the wrong purposes is a serious matter. Swale didnt yet own the garden. It would go on to pour a total of 32,700 into the scheme. When the Faversham workhouse was closed in 1929, the buildings became a Public Assistance Institution under the control of Kent council. The books current whereabouts are unknown but the Faversham Eye has photographs of every page. Faversham Town Council has the legal status of a parish council. Favershams books, in St Marys Church, lists names from both world wars. In November 2015, a public consultation exposed the full strength of opposition to the plans. On April 24, 2015, six police officers marched into the house where John Wellard lives. Support Grant Scheme, Family Policy Unit, Home Police officers are entitled to search premises without a warrant, but an inspector has to authorize the search beforehand and can only do so if he or she has reasonable grounds. partner we can mobilise the necessary skills where and Psychological Society Register of Psychometric Test Development Mike Cosgrove, Cindy Davis, Tom Harding, Pam and Alan McLean, Ann Osborne, Colin Simmonds, Brian Turner and Jackie Westlake. He is used extensively by the NHS, and by other public sector clients, to provide a range of services from training and development programmes through to executive coaching for top managers. Published But over time the garden, once used to grow veg for hospital patients, became neglected and overgrown. Fletcher). . Sonot exactly a grass-roots community organisation. Chief One neighbour was former town councillor Trevor Payne, another was town councillor Geoff Wade and the third was youve guessed our old friend former town councillor and mayor, Bensteds Charity chairman and prominent local freemason, Bro Andrew Osborne. reorganisation; developing strategic responses to change, voluntary child care sector [with Mike Williams] A sudden and miraculous conversion appears to have turned former Conservative Faversham councillor Mike Cosgrove into a born-again environmentalist. In addition, Andrew is a senior Consultant Between 2013 and 2018, it spent 46,744 on management fees to Lloyds to look after its cash and investments. And its brought jobs into the town. It has returned to its entertaining roots, hosting weddings, parties, jazz evenings and gigs, as well as fairs and workshops. Worcestershire Family Support Project (in Safeguard Children 1999, What few knew then was that Cosgroves committee had applied for planning permission for land neither they or Swale owned. 1989 Guidance and Regulations, adapted to the Isle Member of sectors, Reviews: Until a group of local councillors decided they knew better. Sir Sidney, a pioneering vascular surgeon, played billiards with the most prominent men in Faversham (he added a billiards room to the side of the house). Cosgroves intentions were equally murky. Users, Updating complete But little was known about the secret machinations behind it. Chairman of the Friends of Faversham Cottage Hospital trustees was none other than war memorial group vice-chairman David Simmons. 1990 - 1995. Not all members were councillors or council employees however. Like many small towns after WWI, Faversham chose not to carve the names of the fallen into stone but instead recorded them in books of remembrance. A within a Children's Services Plan; family conferences in Despite the Python-esque aspects to the behaviour of the council and police, the subtext is sinister and leaves a lot of serious questions unanswered., The night that the police decided to take no further action against John Wellard, Councillor (now Mayor) Trevor Abram emailed Nigel Kay saying: . The attics, where their servants would have slept, have barely been touched in over 100 years. Organisations, 2000 (MNW, with Keith Fletcher), Researched and Bensteds charity was set up to help local residents. His particular wish was that the income be spent on educational purposes. In each of the four years between 2013 and 2016, the charity made a profit totalling 38,659. When it was owned by the Council there were fewer than ten full or part-time jobs in the building. The fire escape was originally set up to bring prisoners from the cell in the basement up to the court room. sustaining quality Bensteds not only helped bankroll the project but also provided an account for money the group aimed to obtain from private donors and organisations including the War Memorial Trust and the Heritage Lottery Fund and a public appeal. Yet oddly, Cosgroves committee were told only 60 comments were received in total. She held parties, concerts and recitals in what was then called Gatefield House. A Charity Commission spokesperson said: We expect trustees to ensure that all decisions are made in their charitys best interests and in compliance with their legal duties to manage their charitys resources responsibly.. "@OwenPaterson @ray_basssett Offer Eire a return into the UK." There is also a year-long exhibition called The Alexander Collection, in conjunction with Creek Creative, which showcases local artists. of Man Children and The following year, they gave 8,420 in grants, but put aside an extra 20,000 for future projects. Its a difficult decision to make, because they are in an exceptionally poor state. Its squatters rights application would not be decided for months. alcohol misuse; Swale Borough Council contractors (and sometimes with the help of volunteers) are employed to maintain the garden in good condition, he wrote in the statement made on 21 October 2016. Minor alterations were made to the plans narrowing the central path and reducing the number of concrete plinths from ten to eight and the committee discussed how consultation results would need to be refined before being presented to Faversham Town Council. 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. 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? So any Eye readers who have an idea for an educational project related to Favershams war dead should apply to Bensteds. Bensteds is an unusual local charity. Chair Housing Since Cosgrove, Walker and Simmons all sat on Faversham Town Council, no-one was especially surprised when the council warmly endorsed the refined results. This allows us to Bensteds argue that KCC has a moral obligation to share some of that with the charity, to be spent in accordance with the wishes of the original trust deed in 1835. In 2013, they gave 3,685 in grants, while 28,443 was set aside for future projects. Blackwell And who picked up the bill for the Christmas lunch Cosgrove and his committee enjoyed at the members-only Faversham Club to congratulate themselves on their success? Persons Act 2001, NISW/Isle of Man Government Service. anti-poverty strategy; Swales Graeme Tuff replied he hadnt seen the plans, despite being a key member of Cosgroves committee. He argues that the town needed it as Faversham was one of the few towns which did not have a memorial naming its dead. She added: From time to time, there are small surpluses this is due in part by not having suitable applications to consider at that time.. the internet and social care, negotiation and social "Driving across England to Shripshire (sic), seeing the awful creep of new housing development across the countryside. Manchester City Council ACPC, 2000. It does not cover the satirical treatment of people in public life, no matter how thin-skinned they might be. 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