The Waverley Web has been contacted by a concerned Alfold resident whose husband nearly choked on his cornflakes and uttered an expletive which, she assures us, has never passed his lips before in her hearing – ‘WTF!!!’
Pardon our Russian, but we’re only repeating what we’ve been told! Apparently, the gentleman in question was perusing the accounts of the parish council, as he does every year – because that’s the type of person he is – and he noticed a major discrepancy. So MAJOR at first he thought it must be a typo or had someone put the decimal point in the wrong place???
For, according to the January 9th 2018 budget, this tiny parish council which, in a normal year, has a turnover of £35,000 and, in the previous year, had grants and donations of £14,850, had received grants and donations of £276,400. and, even more staggeringly, had spent the entire sum on legal fees!!!
WTF indeed!!!!!!!!!!
Who on earth is bank-rolling Alfold Parish Council to the tune of £276,400? Its’ annual precept is around £25,000 and that money is usually swallowed up dealing with ditches, hedges and dog shit! Anyone attending Alfold Parish Council meetings, even on an irregular basis, will know that Pooper-Scooping at the playground is a permanent preoccupation for the Parish Councillors and leads to much animated (pardon the pun!) discussion.
The full accounts can be found by clicking here.
Q
Has Alfold PC, unbeknown to its parishioners, given up scooping the poop and scooped the Lotto? Or has someone died and left them a legacy? And did they spend the lot desperately defending their scoop when disgruntled rellies contested the will?
Can anyone throw any light on what’s going on in Alfold – shortly to change its name to Kerchingold?! Or, are we going to have to file for an Unexplained Wealth Order? You know us here at the Waverley Web, we’re always on trend!
The next Alfold Parish Meeting will take place on. Or will Nick Pidgeon have lived up to his name and taken flight? But, even if he has, we’re sure the very competent Clerk, Crystal Tipps Weddell, will have an explanation.
Will it be rather embarrassing for Chairman Nik Pidgeon Partner at lawyers Charles Russell Speechlys? His Chairman’s 2018 report on the Local Plan said:
“In respect of Dunsfold Park, again we made representations during the planning process, and with the Joint Parish Councils, were represented at the Public Inquiry following the Call-In by the Secretary of State of the planning permission that was granted.
All this involved much work and expense. (WWethinks quite a lot of work and expense!!) Thanks in particular to Beverley for her assistance in keeping this organised.
Yet there was NO mention of thanks to their donor of A QUARTER OF A MILLION POUNDS FOR LEGAL FEES?
We look forward to hearing from Alfold residents at mailtocontact@waverleyweb.org
Alfold Chairman’s Report: http://www.alfold.org/APC%20Draft%20MINUTES%208.5.18.pdf
The WW has just received a comment to : contact@waverleyweb.org from an Alfold man very concerned that his comments may somehow be traced back to him! What are people afraid of in that village, we wonder? However, although we vet comments before they are published to prevent defamatory statements. We want to assure all our readers that unless you wish for your real name to be disclosed, and wish to use s pseudonym we pledge would never reveal your identity. However, although you may comment, we must ensure that we know your comment are from a bona fide correspondents.
Crikey. They must have a whole host of local legal troubles there, I’m surprised we hadn’t heard about it.
When is the next Alfold Parish Council Meeting? I’d guess that a few people might be interested in attending that.
WW was pretty shocked too! Might be standing room only. Obviously a big legal issue in the village? Obviously, nothing to do with the neighbours.
As a relative newcomer to the area, who doesn’t feel she knows enough to contribute meaningfully yet, today’s post has brought me out of my shell.
I’m no accountant but I do know that when I was running my own business if I had received extraordinary ‘grants / donations’ to the tune of £276,400, and then spent that exact same amount and, seemingly, not a penny more or a penny less, on legal fees my accountant would have insisted on putting an explanatory note in my accounts as this unexpected windfall and spending splurge would have raised all sorts of red flags with the Inland Revenue; not least the suggestion that I might be money laundering!
Neither am I an expert on Parish Councils. Having moved from London (yes, I confess, I’m an emigree from ‘Nappy Valley’, as you once so aptly tagged us!) I know I’ve a lot to learn about village life and am, I assure you, quite enchanted at the prospect but, seriously, even a townie like me knows that for a small village the size of Alfold (which I believe has a population of approximately 1,000) to generate donations of £276,400 in one year is staggering! How on earth did they achieve that and, even more mind blowing (as your Alfold resident’s husband has already said, entirely understandably), WTF did they spend it on precisely?
I don’t know whether the Chairman and Clerk of Alfold Parish Council read the Waverley Web but, if not, I do hope someone is going to bring your post to their attention and ask them for a detailed answer to the question because it really does need one. In fact, doesn’t Waverley Borough Council and/or Surrey County Council have a duty to investigate such a massive windfall and extravagant spending spree? At the very least, if I was an Alfold resident which, sadly, I’m not, I would be hoping for / expecting a discount on that part of my Council Tax that goes to the Parish Council next year if their fund-raising powers are that good!
Finally, why do so many people on this site use pseudonyms? Are they embarrassed to own their thoughts or is it simply ‘de rigeur’?
Peppa Pig? I know a lot of what s/he has to say is very childish and Cliff Clavin’s comments are in a similar vein but Stacy Strumpette! Seriously? What’s that all about? As for Denise Wordsworth, I don’t think she’s got anything to hide; or have I missed something?!
@ Jane Smith: are we really expected to take Jane Smith as a real name? ,,, there are many “J Smiths” living in waverley …. in fact, ive often used the name myself when checking into a hotel with a client 😉 ,,, and Strumpette is a perfectly reasonible surname formed from strumpet, just like the famous novalist Trollope from trollop … i believe theirs also a waverley planner called Parrott.from parrot.and that,s his real name im sure.
Anyway about the money … seems like Alfold council has fallen pray to one of those money laurndering scams … if you let us use you’re bank account we’el pay you a percentge… proabbly some columbean drugs barron cleaning up there ill gotton gains … i hope the 50pound notes they payed in were “All Folded” neatly! 😀
Luv, Stacy xxx
“Approving of Woking’s high rise erections”
Here at the WW we are suitably impressed with Alfold Parish Council’s fundraising abilities, and suspect that all the other towns and villages in the borough will be eager to learn its secrets, so they too can generate such huge sums of money.
I do know a thing or two about parish council finance and think this is worrying. I’ve had a little look at the APC website and I can tell you what is missing! The external auditor’s report has not been published – and the law requires that that should have been placed on the parish council’s website by 30 September. It is possible that the external auditor has not yet reported – the external auditor appointed to cover Surrey parishes has struggled with workload this year and some reports have been delayed (although I would have expected to see something to this effect published on the APC website by 30 September). The external auditor checks variances between years and asks for an explanation of significant differences – I’d love to see the explanation given here. I wonder how long it will be before the external audit report appears here with the rest of the annual accounts information? http://www.alfold.org/page12.html
Don’t hold your breath – we doubt that any explanation will be forthcoming. Unless of course, Waverley Borough Council break the habit of a lifetime and start investigating exactly what one of its parish councils is up to? No doubt we will all be pouring over the external auditor’s report if it should ever see the light of day. However, perhaps the residents of Alfold will get the answers before we do?
We understand it may be standing room only to hear about Alfold Parish Council’s lottery win, and the legal costs involved in retaining it? The meeting will be held on Tuesday 13 November at 7.30. Unless an Emergency Extraordinary Parish Council Meeting is called in the meantime?
Gosh – Just shows I have been working too hard – I completely missed this post!!
That is one large sum of money…Guessing it was spent on the Dunsfold Appeal for the Joint Parish Councils Legal fees – Shouldn’t be too hard to check if the other Parish Councils that formed part of the Group Action Put their money into the “pot”
Jane – Welcome to the Area – Like you I escaped the “Big Smoke” 4 years ago and the best thing we ever did. I hope you will be very happy here. I can assure you I have nothing to hide I Really am a “Wordsworth” – I have always believed in putting My name on anything I post. If I am going to be leery enough to write a Post then I think I should be accountable!
Cheers
Denise