Public inquiry called over Plas Madoc Communities First scandal

Following the publication of the Wales Audit Office report into misuse of public money in Plas Madoc Communities First, Janet Ryder, Plaid AM for North Wales, said:

"This is a deeply disturbing report outlining quite massive abuse of public money for private gain. That's why I'm calling for a public inquiry into the Communities First set-up to ensure that this appalling misuse of public funds is not repeated elsewhere.

"The detailed audit findings demonstrate that tens of thousands of pounds have been paid without proper checks, invoicing or even cheque stubs being filled in - many of these payments were to friends and family.

"Elements in PMCF were operating without regard to their own board or any external checks. Cash payments were rife - even extending to buying a car for £2,500.

"Alarm bells first rang back in 2003 - the first year CF was set up in Plas Madoc, when local council auditors found serious financial problems. Despite this litany of misuse of public funds, nothing further was done by the Labour government of the time and the problem remained until a lone whistleblower went public.

"The failure of the former Labour administration to question its own flagship policy begs wider questions.

"Can we be sure that there's only one Plas Madoc? Only a public inquiry will tell us."

Communities First facing spending freeze?

This story in the Western Mail suggests that the Assembly Minister is going to stop all future new spending by Communities First. This would be in reaction to the alleged misuse of public funds in Plas Madoc, which is still under investigation. For the first time, the 'leak' outlines some of the allegations being made against Communities First staff.

 

Claims of financial abuse may close fund

Well-placed sources have told the Western Mail that Social Justice Minister Carl Sargeant plans to announce a moratorium on new spending associated with the troubled Communities First programme.THE Assembly Government’s flagship anti-poverty programme is at risk because of allegations of financial abuse at a publicly-funded community project, we can reveal.

More than £241m has been spent on the programme’s projects in Wales’ most deprived areas over eight years but a succession of reports has questioned their effectiveness in tackling poverty.

And now the minister is understood to be so concerned about the implication of alleged financial irregularities that he is ready to call a halt to new Communities First spending. Results of a joint investigation carried out by Assembly officials and the Wales Audit Office into behaviour at the Plas Madoc Communities First partnership at Plas Madoc, near Wrexham, will be delivered to Mr Sargeant imminently.

Two senior members of staff there have been suspended since last November as a probe has looked into accusations that:

A car bought out of public funds for the benefit of the project as a whole was allegedly commandeered for the exclusive use of a staff member;

Individuals were paid for work on a “cash in hand” basis; and

Payment records were chaotic and incomplete.

A source told us: “This looks like the beginning of the end for Communities First. Carl Sargeant is expected to make the announcement very soon.

“He will say that while core funding for Communities First projects that is already committed will continue, no new initiatives will be authorised.”

The prospect of a moratorium on new spending will not be popular with those running Communities First projects.

A leading committee member of one South Wales project, who did not wish to be named, said: “It would be grossly unfair for Carl Sargeant to punish all Communities First partnerships because of this. A lot of good work is being done despite the criticisms in reports that have been published.”

The brainchild of current Health Minister and failed Welsh Labour leadership contender Edwina Hart, successive reports have said there is little evidence that, despite all the money spent on it, Communities First has succeeded in improving prosperity in Wales’ poorest areas.

Last week, a cross-party group of AMs condemned a “chronic and long-lasting failure” by the Assembly Government to provide leadership.

The Assembly’s public accounts committee said: “Our conclusions are that, overall, the Communities First programme has not delivered good value for the significant amount of public money spent on it, and that this is largely because of weaknesses in the [Assembly’s] construction and management of the programme.”

The report follows findings by the Wales Audit Office last year that of the £214m spent between 2001 and 2009, £140m had gone to partnerships, mainly to employ staff and administer projects.

At Plas Madoc, project co-ordinator Miriam Beard and finance and monitoring officer Andy Bunning were suspended as the investigation got under way.

Plas Madoc Communities First was formed in 2003 as a company limited by guarantee and is a registered charity.

The community has major problems with access to services, such as GPs and dentists, education standards, local employment opportunities and childcare support.

Since it was set up the partnership – which has an independent set of trustees – it has co- ordinated a range of beneficial projects to support the area, including £125,000 to give play areas a facelift, taking children on life-changing trips to Gambia, and organising local environmental schemes.

But concerns were raised last year about the way it was being run, with Mandy Bostwick, a psychotherapist and community councillor who provided counselling services to the partnership, voicing her worries.

Mrs Bostwick told BBC Wales last October: “I started to have some concerns about the way they were operating after I attended a staff meeting. I started to realise that it was the same residents connected to the project – I never saw any new faces.

“I started to hear about people being paid cash. I certainly received cash payment, a nominal fee, and I started to ask for receipts for the money that I was receiving for the work that I was doing, and never got receipts.”

On the advice of Communities First officials in North Wales, Mrs Bostwick raised her concerns with Plas Madoc’s trustees. Subsequently the team stopped using her services.

The claims were denied by the partnership’s managers at the time, who insisted they would be vindicated after the investigations had concluded.

Neither Ms Beard nor Mr Dunning could be contacted for comment about the new development.

An Assembly Government spokeswoman said: “We are aware of issues in one particular Communities First partnership.

“The minister expects to receive a report in the near future regarding this. He will then make a statement to the Assembly.

“It would be inappropriate to comment any further at this stage.”

Fans have their say on community control of sport

Janet Ryder joined fans from across Wales in discussing ways to ensure a cooperative approach to sport in a recent conference in Cardiff. Among those making presentations was Lindsay Jones, secretary of the Wrexham Supporters' Trust.

Read the full report here.

£214m scheme 'is failing' poorest communities

An ambitious £214 million scheme to improve some of the poorest communities in Wales has "failed miserably" in some areas, according to a North Wales AM.

Janet Ryder, Plaid Cymru AM, sat on the Welsh Assembly audit committee that has just produced a report on the Community First projects throughout Wales. In a hard-hitting attack on the programme she said:

 "The Communities First programme has not delivered good value for the significant amount of public money spent on it. The report makes it clear that this is largely because of weaknesses in the way the scheme was conceived and managed by previous Welsh Governments. 

"In my own area of North Wales, whilst I accept that some local benefits have been delivered in communities, there are too many examples where the project has not made the impact required for such a large investment."

Janet Ryder cited three examples in North Wales:

 "The experiences of Rhyl West, Plas Madoc and Caia Park are very different but provide examples of a lack of understanding of local needs and the situation already existing on the ground.

"In Rhyl, Communities First failed to establish itself as a community-based organisation and had to be wound up after hundreds of thousands of pounds was spent on administration.

"In Caia Park, Wrexham, there was already an existing partnership in the area that had experience of delivering services and co-ordinating work with other agencies. Given this well-established set-up, it was perverse to try to graft an entirely new Communities First programme onto the community and there was significant conflict between the groups. 

"What is clear too is that the vast amount of Communities First money has gone on salaries and administration. I am not convinced that all these programmes, when they come to an end, will leave a lasting and sustainable legacy in the community. Yes, they have launched some initiatives such as food co-operatives but is this sufficient to justify millions of pounds being spent in areas that need that money to make a real difference?"

 She said the blame for failure had to lie at the top rather than at grassroots level: 

"The report makes clear its concern that 'the Welsh Government provides insufficient direction to service providers and is not adequately monitoring the programme'. Now given that public money is tight and we need to ensure best value at all times, how can we justify a £214m programme if it's not being targetted well and then monitored rigorously?"

Janet Ryder added: 

"The final example in North Wales is Plas Madoc near Wrexham. I don't want to pre-judge an ongoing investigation into that specific Communities First scheme, where two leading staff members are currently suspended, but I have been made aware of very serious concerns regarding its running. Once again, it seems the checks and balances from the centre were not in place. When complaints were first made, they were referred back to the people against whom they were complaining. That is not a healthy and open system of government."

She said the report made recommendations to improve monitoring as well as insisting that the Welsh Government ensures that it is able to demonstrate hard outcomes for this investment of public money that demonstrate progress towards the Communities First objectives:

 "We're asking that the Welsh Government provides us with a progress report, and details of programme-level movement towards achieving objectives within the next 12 months."

Plaid AM joins the Crusade

Rugby League is coming to Wrexham on Friday, January 29, when Crusaders take on reigning Super League Champions Leeds Rhinos at the Racecourse (kick-off 8pm). And self-confessed rugby league fan Janet Ryder AM was one of the first in line to get her season ticket ready for the big kick off.
 North Wales regional AM Janet Ryder, who is also patron of the Welsh Rugby League, picked up her season ticket for the 2010 Engage Super League Season at the Racecourse Ground from Crusaders Head Coach, Brian Noble, along with First Team Coach Jon Sharp.
Janet, a huge League Rugby enthusiast, said:

“Nothing beats the atmosphere and excitement of watching a live rugby league game and I can't wait to see the Crusaders in action at the Racecourse. The support for rugby league in North Wales is potentially huge and I'm expecting the curtain-raiser against Leeds Rhinos to be a sell-out.

“North Wales has been starved of major sporting events in recent years and I'm sure the people form all over the region will turn out in force to get behind the Crusaders.” 

Mike Turner, Commercial Director of the Crusaders praised the support and help that Janet Ryder had given to the club.

“Janet has been one of the main champions of rugby league in Wales and the club has been very grateful for her support. She has worked tremendously hard to raise the profile of the game in Wales and we're delighted to have her on board.

“We always knew that bringing Super League to Wrexham would be well received by the public, but we have been truly overwhelmed by the support from the local community.

“Ticket sales so far have been very encouraging. We are introducing Super League to a brand new set of fans in Wrexham and are looking forward to people across the region coming out and supporting the Crusaders.”

Anger at hotel name change

The decision to rename a Flintshire hotel previously known as 'The Gateway to Wales' as 'Days Hotel - Chester North' has been branded as a "creeping Chesterfication" of north-east Wales by Plaid Cymru politicians.

North Wales Assembly Member Janet Ryder said the decision by Wyndham Hotel group to change the hotel's name was a slap in the face for Flintshire, as the county's effort at economic regeneration was being undermined by this unjustified "Chesterfication".

She added that she would be raising the matter with Welsh planning minister Carl Sergeant:

 "As minister for planning law, does the AM for Alyn and Deeside intend to do anything to prevent his constituency from being slowly absorbed into England?"

Janet Ryder added:

 "This re-branding is one of the unforeseen consequences of councils like Flintshire signing up to a long-term plan called the West Cheshire/North East Wales strategy.

"We've heard about Liverpool MPs calling for a Mersey mayor that includes Flintshire and Wrexham. Now we see businesses re-branding themselves as Chester based when they're in Flintshire. Where does it all end?"

Her concerns were echoed by Plaid's General Election candidate for the Alyn and Deeside constituency Maurice Jones:

 "This isn't the first company in Flintshire to mislead the public. The Holiday Inn calls itself Chester West, despite being between Ewloe and Northop. Are they ashamed to be in Wales? The Gateway to Wales was able to market itself using the dragon on the bridge and companies coming to Wales should recognise where they are located."

The West Cheshire/North East Wales strategy is aimed at increasing ties between Cheshire and north-east Wales and there has been huge opposition to it in many communities in Flintshire and Wrexham, where thousands of new houses have been built partly to meet the needs of Cheshire-based commuters. A 15,000-strong petition to the Welsh Assembly Government opposing the strategy and the related Mersey-Dee Alliance has been collected, the largest ever presented to the petitions committee. It will be debated in the Assembly next month.

Plaid's candidate for the general election in Wrexham, Arfon Jones, added: 

"With an election coming up we need to know where our two local Unionist MPs, Mark Tami and Ian Lucas, stand on this creeping Chesterfication of north-east Wales. Do they know whats happening? Or is it they dont care that Welsh identity in this part of Wales is being eroded and they are acquiescing to all of this?"

Council must respond to Bodelwyddan housing referendum - Plaid AM

Plans to treble the size of a Denbighshire village should be thrown out after a massive "no" vote in a local referendum.

Janet Ryder, Plaid Cymru AM for North Wales, said: "First of all, I'd like to congratulate the people of Bodelwyddan for braving sub-zero temperatures to vote in their hundreds against a plan that would treble the size of their village.

"This was an overwhelming message as 94% voted against the housing scheme. Denbighshire County Council has decided, without regard for local housing need or any sustainability assessment, to impose an additional 1700 homes on a village of just 800 houses.

"This effectively creates a dormitory town on the A55, ideal for commuters to Chester and Liverpool. It's a worrying development that does not fit in with our determination to reduce the carbon footprint, develop sustainable communities and improve community cohesion in Wales. The people of Bodelwyddan have quite rightly rejected this undemocratic scheme out of hand."

Speaking in the Assembly chamber, she made a plea that the Business Minister Jane Hutt bring forward a debate on the West Cheshire/North East Wales Strategic Plan, which emphasises the need for 20,000 additional houses in North-east Wales, mainly based on the housing demand in North-west England. Janet Ryder added that the village referendum was an explicit rejection of that plan, which had not been endorsed by the people of Wales.

She also challenged Denbighshire County Council to bow to the democratic will of local people and amend their draft Local Development Plan accordingly.

Full result:

Voters 425
Turnout 25.8%

No 394

Yes 30

Spoilt 1

Total 425