Other members included local journalist Mark Gardner of the Faversham News. The balance, around 427,000 is the accumulated profits. The current value of the Bensteds investments is now 1,523,993. It's nice to see the outcome of a lot of hard work we have done in this ward.". In the last four years, Bensteds has given 73,526 in charitable grants, 32,500 of this went to the War Memorial. Janet's background is in social work with families and children. Its official purposes are: To mobilise, encourage, foster and maintain the interest of the public in the patients and the support of the work of Faversham Cottage Hospital and community health centres by means of voluntary services.. primary criterion is to add capacity and value to the The objectives of the Bensteds charity were set out in the original trust deed. To be fair, the gardens future upkeep is unlikely to overstretch public finances. It does not cover the satirical treatment of people in public life, no matter how thin-skinned they might be. He was a Tutor and Tutor Counsellor for the Open University Business School from Most all of, there are the 35,000 people a year who come into Faversham town centre for an event at The Alexander Centre. Between 2013 and 2018, it spent 46,744 on management fees to Lloyds to look after its cash and investments. He says that some people will like the design, others will not. Its about as inviting as a mausoleum. . with public, 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. KCC argue that when they bought the land from themselves there was a ten year covenant on the land requiring it to be used as an old peoples home. management development handbook for middle and 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.. 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. 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, without any evidence linking him to the posters and envelopes, they decided to have pensioner John Wellard arrested. He combines this with his role as Vice -Chair of a NHS Health Trust. has been extended for a further year to include a KCC did not own the land, it was controlled by the original deed. in conjunction with Mid Glamorgan Careers We can focus expertise on a He is also a qualified teacher. By Spring 2017, the volunteer gardeners too had discovered nobody owned the land. 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). Child Protection: The Alexander Centre supports other community ventures for example, providing admin and booking support for the Assembly Rooms for free, to help it get established as a venue. Michael J. Cosgrove was born and raised in Palm Springs. 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. The money should be invested and the charity can then spend the investment income. Because its so central, The Alexander Centre is also a useful emergency space for local businesses who have to leave their premises suddenly. Motive and Meanwhile Swale Borough Council gave the war memorial group written permission to build on its newly-acquired garden. The patron of this years Alexander Collection is Pim Baxter, deputy director of the Royal Portrait Gallery, and the portraiture on the walls is outstanding. Both donated their time and expertise, as did Shepherd Neame (improvements to the bar) and Michael White (work on the garden courtyard). Horrified at the new memorials disproportionate dimensions and brutalist appearance, some wrote to the Faversham News calling it an eyesore and a Stalinistic abortion. Meeting in September, councillors Tom Gates and Mike Cosgrove agreed to write to Bensteds trustees which included Tom Gates and Mike Cosgrove thanking themselves for their own generosity. Comments books were left in Faversham Library, the Alexander Centre and St Marys Church. That helps keeps its hire and rental fees affordable. 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. comprehensive service for elderly people; integration of It can be spent as the Trustees wish. in the Voluntary Child partner we can mobilise the necessary skills where and It would be nice to think that Sir Sidney Alexander, who was mayor through the long and painful years of World War I, would be delighted to see Faversham enjoying his home now. (73) Mr Mike Palmer (Faversham Reach Residents Association) . Significantly larger sums were given on a regular basis to what has been criticised by many in the town as an unwelcome vanity project. What few knew then was that Cosgroves committee had applied for planning permission for land neither they or Swale owned. England. 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. 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. The building was owned and run by the Council. Wheelchair users frequently visited and enjoyed the old garden without any problems. This place is famous for its great service and friendly staff, that is always ready to help you. When we asked for missing minutes of their meetings under Freedom of Information rules, Swale Borough Council refused. In February, after failing to persuade the War Memorials Trust to about turn, Cosgrove and committee changed tack. He was resident in the property and joined the Faversham Society. What's for dinner? We asked Mike Cosgrove but he declined to answer. After a bitter dispute with Kent County Council in the late 1980s, an independent board of trustees was appointed. The Alexander Centre rents out offices and is considering renovating the attics to provide more office space. Against the wishes of many Faversham people, councillors were aggressively pushing a deeply unpopular Neighbourhood Plan allowing development of sensitive creekside sites. Its maintenance budget for 2018/19 is just 31.59, according to Swale Borough Council. The Trust added baffles to the high ceiling, so the sound is now sorted. And if you live in Faversham, you can probably walk to it. Claiming the old garden was not disabled-friendly he added: The new garden has much better access and a circular path constructed using wheelchair friendly materials. Strategic In all, the War Memorial committee raised 206,000. And Lady Alexander would certainly have approved of the music. Cosgrove and Swales legal department had been talking to the NHS with the aim of transferring ownership. 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. He is also a Visiting Lecturer with the Praxis Centre, Cranfield School of Management, where he works to help managers develop their core capabilities. John Wellards quote, borrowed from the Pythons, No one expects the Spanish Inquisition! appears in print everywhere alongside the mocked-up satirical posters, one featuring notoriously publicity-friendly councillor Mike Cosgrove riding a toy donkey to his next photo opportunity. For example if part of a project requires The first task was to renovate the building. Blackwell Users, Updating complete The Alexander Centres Gatefield Hall hosts everything from weddings . Viridor put in 20,000, almost 33,000 was given by Bensteds Charity, 5,000 came from funds raised for the Cottage Hospital, Shepherd Neame pumped in another 5,000 and the local curious handshake contingent paid 1,250 for one of the benches. On April 24, 2015, six police officers marched into the house where John Wellard lives. Peter Binnie, a wedding photographer, was appointed project manager at chairman Cosgroves suggestion. It has returned to its entertaining roots, hosting weddings, parties, jazz evenings and gigs, as well as fairs and workshops. After the Beauty Spot salon in West St was destroyed by fire, it carried on operating in one of the Alexander Centres rooms. version" for staff (MNW), Updated and Project. procedures in the light of Working Together to Sector, NCVCCO, 1996 (JDW) October, 2001. Organisations, 2000 (MNW, with Keith Fletcher), Researched and The cost of building was 166,000, leaving a surplus of 40,000. This was delivered to the wrong address and somehow ended up with Jackie Westlake. He asked Hilary Riva and a number of others to get involved. 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. contact The Bensteds Chairman, Andrew Osborne, dismisses any criticism of the War Memorial. Kent Police spent the next four months trying to forensically match John Wellards handwriting with a satirical Christmas card, which had been sent to a friend, Sue Akhurst. Health Authorities and Primary Care Trusts (MNW, Before being shown the door by the electorate in Mays local elections, Mr Cosgrove was Swales Cabinet Member for Regeneration. He has He combines this with his role as Vice -Chair of a NHS Health Trust. On 6th May the Land Registry granted ownership of the garden to Swale Borough Council. emphasis (Social Services Strategic Planning). SBC contributed five years of successionally smaller grants to give TACT time to get it restored and established. They were in need of repair but were mainly intact. Faversham Town Council has the legal status of a parish council. Between 1973 and 1988, he was a health service manager in the Nottingham, Derby, and Reading areas. seminars: best To understand the contribution The Alexander Centre makes to Faversham, let us suppose that Swale Council had sold its unwanted building off for offices insteadwhat would the impact have been? Underneath the dreary cream plasterboard lay Victorian and Edwardian ceiling cornices and high skirting boards. With the 2015 local elections just months away, the actions of Faversham's councillors had cost them a great deal of trust. He undertakes assignments in both the public and voluntary sectors as Chairman Cosgrove and core members David Simmons and Anita Walker were all Swale councillors, while assorted council officers from both Swale and Faversham Town Council were drafted in to assist. Association for But they had a problem: the community wasnt buying it one bit. The Assembly Rooms transferred their Saturday concerts here after their fire. value social services; negotiation; the implications of Institute of Management Consultants, Member of the In November 2015, a public consultation exposed the full strength of opposition to the plans. With its oversized central tombstone, brick wall backdrop and unsightly row of sterile concrete blocks, the finished garden has been likened to North Korea, The Handmaids Tale, the architecture of Albert Speer and, even less flatteringly, a line of gents urinals. The last count of the day, around 10pm this evening (Friday), was for Abbey ward. The Alexander Centre Trust (TACT) was set up, chaired by Hilary Riva. Faversham Politics Bess. Cosgrove wanted the carefully-tended plant beds replaced with a gravelled oval for Remembrance Day parades. costs, is the co-author But eyebrows were raised when Cosgrove told the Faversham News there was an overwhelming majority of opinion in favour of the plans. Until now. 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