Court rules ex Brent headteacher has to payback £1.4million plus to Brent Council

A former head teacher and his previous colleagues have today  been ordered to pay back a total of £1,395,839, excluding costs, for their part in a school bonuses scandal by the High Court.

Alan Davies, the former head teacher of Copland Community School in Wembley, was found to have benefitted from the “vast sums” he received in unlawful bonuses over several years before he was suspended in May 2009.

Davies, who had previously been knighted for services to education, now faces having to pay the whopping sum of £1,395,839 plus 75% of the Council’s assessed legal costs. He had previously taken home more than £400,000 in one year, three times the going rate for a head teacher. He was convicted of false accounting in 2013 and stripped of his knighthood in 2014. 

In August earlier this year, the High Court found that his justifications for the excessive payments were “patently untrue” and “false”.

The payments to Davies and three associates were approved by former Chair of Governors Dr Indravadan Patel and former Vice Chair of Governors, Martin Day, who were both criticised by the Judge for “wholesale failures” and “reckless indifference”. Dr Patel and Mr Day now need to pay back £552,729 between them plus 65% of the Council’s assessed legal costs. 

Cllr Margaret McLennan, Deputy Leader of Brent Council, said:

We are delighted with the verdict as it means the money, which had been swindled, is now going to be returned and can now be used for the benefit of local people.

Davies and his colleagues were arrogantly paying themselves ridiculously high and unjustified bonuses, including Davies pocketing a whopping £400,000 in one year - which is around three times the going rate for the job.

It has taken years of stamina and determination to win this victory but justice has finally been done.

The scandal was revealed by the whistle blowing of  teacher trade unionist Hank Roberts

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Allied Healthcare collapse impacts on Brent adult care provision

Care for older and disabled people in Brent who receive care from Allied Healthcare are facing uncertainty tonight with the news that the company is seeking to off-load its contracts to other providers.

The Care Quality Commission had warned the company last month that it had concerns about its financial viability and issued a notice to this effect. Some council had already begun the process of finding new providers although at the time of writing it is not clear whether this includes Brent.

Allied Healthcare claimed that the CQC statement had 'negatively impacted' on the company leading to loss of customers an d affecting staff retention and recruitment.

The BBC said tonight that it understood the company had been able to extend its credit for three weeks.

Ian Hudspeth, of the Local Government Association LGA, told the BBC that councils had "robust contingency plans in place". 

"Councils are confident of ensuring care for people affected and are also focused on retaining the highly valued staff that deliver these services to help keep the transition in business ownership as smooth as possible.'

In 2014 the Care Quality Commission inspected Allied Healthcare provision in Brent and found it needed improvement due to concern over the safety of its clients. LINK

Cllr Harbi Farah, Brent Council Cabinet Member for Adult Social Care told Wembley Matters:

We have a contingency plan to ensure vulnerable adults in Brent are supported, this is a priority for me and the department. I will update you.

A new Blue Plaque in Wembley – remembering Henry Cooper

Guest post by Philip Grant

For the past 40 years, Wembley has only had one Blue Plaque commemorating a famous former resident*. This week it got its second!

Thanks to the efforts of local resident, Tony Royden, the plaque was installed on the wall above a shop at 4 Ealing Road, near the junction with Wembley High Road:

        A new Blue Plaque in Wembley – remembering Henry Cooper

Photo of the plaque, courtesy of Tony Royden

As well as fighting some of his most famous boxing matches in Wembley (at Wembley Arena, and most memorably against Cassius Clay - later known as Muhammed Ali - in front of 55,000 people at Wembley Stadium in 1963), Henry Cooper lived at 5 Ledway Drive (near Preston Road) from 1960 until 1975.

He is probably less famous for his three years as a greengrocer (while still British and Commonwealth Heavyweight Champion), at the shop which he opened on 9 November 1965. His former home is a bit off the beaten track, so the plaque above the shop is a much better location to publicise this famous Wembley resident.

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Cuttings on the shop’s opening from the “Wembley Observer” and “Wembley News”, November 1965

* If you don't know who Wembley’s first blue plaque commemorates, or where it is, you can find the answer on the Brent Archives website LINK .

Philip Grant

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Community shows up in force to back Northwick Park Community Garden

The site beside the main railway line at Northwick Park

The Community Garden will run in a strip parallel to the railway line

The local community came out in force last night to puts its weight behind plans for a Community Garden in Northwick Park.  The idea hatched up initiaally by a group of  Northwick Park dog walkers has gathered support from local residents, professional gardeners and Brent Council.

After a presentation on developments so far and an explanation of the principles of forest gardens residents fed-back on the plans and made their own suggestions for what the garden should contain.

The group is a registered charity and has its own Facebook page HERE. One of the essentials is that in order to get funding for the project it needs local people to indicate their support - the more the better.

The project introduces itself:

In a special area of Northwick Park we are planning on creating a naturalistic green space where local residents, schools, visitors to the area including Northwick Park Hospital can unwind, learn about trees, plants and wildlife, and harvest seasonal produce. The produce will be organically grown without pesticides, herbicides or chemical fertilizer.

The garden design will be based on the permaculture concept. Permaculture mimics natural patterns within ecosystems. The ecosystem will take care of the garden in the long term. It will be a self-sufficient and sustainable natural development.

Fruit and nut trees, shrubs with edible berries, herbaceous perennial with edible leaves, flowers and herbs may feature in the garden design. It’s also important that we provide places for people to sit within the community garden and enjoy the natural surrounding.

The charity called ‘Northwick Park Community Garden’ was established in October 2018 to put all this in place. We are going to apply for Community Infrastructure Level (CIL) funding in December 2018. We’ll keep you updated on progress.

The construction of the garden will be done via the permablitz process where volunteers gather together to build the garden LINK. This is usually done in one day but a bigger project will need several phases.

Fascist graffiti removed from railway footbridge at Gladstone Park

The fascist graffiti that was painted on the railway footbridge bridge linking Kendall Road and Gladstone Park has been painted out ahead of the community 'paint out' that had been planned for 5pm this evening.  LINK

As I understand it Network Rail had also undertaken to remove it but a local resident beat them to it.

A clear message to  fascist individuals or groups that they are not welcome here.


UPDATE FROM  A READER November 14th:  A resident had done the initial paint-out and then Network Rail followed overpainitng not just the area of fascist graffiti but all the other graffiti too, in regulation green. Yesterday evening  a number of Brent residents and councillors gathered at the bridge in a gesture of solidarity with the people of Dollis Hill.

Have you say on how Brent Council allocates social housing to those on the waiting list

King's Drive Estate, Wembley this morning

Brent Council is consulting on how social housing is allocated to people on the housing waiting list. This is what they say:

Residents are being invited to have their say on how the council allocates social housing in Brent.

The council is launching a consultation that asks people to give their views on the criteria for distributing the limited number of social houses currently available.

Brent is proposing changes to ensure that social housing is shared out fairly to people in need. These changes include a proposal to give residents in temporary accommodation priority for social housing that becomes available on the estate where they are living, so that they don't have to move neighbourhoods. Another change looks at giving priority to homeless families living in temporary accommodation on an estate that is being regenerated to move into social housing within the same area.

The full list of proposed changes is available online here. The consultation will end on 22 January 2019, ahead of the Cabinet decision's in March with the agreed changes then set to begin in April.

Cllr Eleanor Southwood, Cabinet Member for Housing and Welfare Reform, said: "It's really important that social housing is distributed fairly given the chronic shortage of genuinely affordable homes in Brent. We are asking for as many views as possible. These changes impact everyone on the waiting list.

"We do have ambitious plans to build more homes in Brent, but these changes work with the limited supply of homes that we have available to us right now."

Brent last reviewed how it allocated social housing in November 2014 and made changes to its scheme in January 2015.

Detailed proposals are not available until you actually start the process of filling in the on-line consultation AVAILABLE HERE  so I have reproduced them below:

To see all the options click on 'read more' below.

The stress & strains of being a GP - 'Who would be doctor?' Brent Patient Voice Debate November 15th 7pm Learie Constantine Centre

Dear Brent Patient Voice members and friends
“Who would be a doctor?” is the topic of our public meeting and debate on Thursday 15^th November next at the Learie Constantine Centre, 40-47 Dudden Hill Lane, NW10 2ET at 7pm (refreshments from 6.30)

We are focussing on the strains and stresses facing GPs. They are our first and principal port of call when we need to access NHS services. Yet

• Practices are merging or closing;
• Workload problems are leading to burnout or early retirement;
• The NHS wants GPs to do more to relieve the load on hospitals;
• Plans to boost GP numbers are way off target;
• Few GPs welcome extra admin and new organisational structures.

What are the answers?

• Will switching to digital help reduce workload?
• What does Primary Care Home mean for doctors and patients?
• How do new roles such as healthcare assistants, community pharmacists and nurse practitioners fit in?

We are fortunate to have recruited highly qualified speakers to lead our debate. They are Dr MC Patel, new Chair of Brent Clinical Commissioning Group, and long-serving Brent GP, and Dr Pauline Foreman, Medical Director for Practice Support at the Royal College of General Practitioners, and also a GP in Hertfordshire.

We look forward to seeing you on 15^th November. Please take this as notice of our AGM from 7 to 7.20pm that day, including reports, minutes and elections to the Steering Group. We urgently need someone to manage our communications and mailshots like this one. Please contact me at robisharp@gmail.com if you can help. I can also supply a flyer for this meeting if you can put up one in your surgery etc.

With best wishes

Robin Sharp
Chair BPV

Respond to Barnet's plans for West Hendon Playing fields at consultation meeting tomorrow

Although in Barnet the West Hendon Playing Fields are also a resource for Brent residents. You may wish to contribute to the consultation.

HAVE YOUR SAY – THE WEST HENDON PLAYING FIELDS DRAFT MASTERPLAN

Public drop-in session at the West Hendon Community Hub Tuesday 13th November. You can come and look at the draft masterplan and provide feedback. The session times are:

10.30am – 12.30pm
3.15pm – 7.00pm.

Address: 

Gadwall House, Perryfield Way

Hendon, Barnet,
The Sport, Leisure and Culture Consultancy (SLC) has been appointed to undertake an appraisal of the options available to Barnet Council for the development and creation of a sports hub with associated community facilities at West Hendon Playing Fields

From Barnet Counci:

In line with the strategies' recommendations, the council has appointed The Sport, Leisure and Culture Consultancy (SLC) to undertake an appraisal of the options available to the council for the development and creation of a sports hub with associated community facilities at West Hendon Playing Fields.

Give us your views
Please give us your views on the options by completing the online questionnaire(External link). We welcome responses from everyone including organisations interested in the future development of these sites. We would also like to hear the views of people from outside the London Borough of Barnet area.

To request a questionnaire in an alternative format, please:

• email: nicola.cross@barnet.gov.uk,
• telephone 020 8359 7404, or
• write to us at: Greenspaces, London Borough of Barnet, North London Business Park, Oakleigh Road South, London, N11 1NP.

How we will use your feedback

SLC will use the results of the engagement to inform the development of an options appraisal report for consideration by the council. This will lead to the development of a draft master plan for the delivery of the preferred option, which will be the subject of further engagement later in the year. Amendments will be made as necessary to the draft master plan following this further engagement, and it will be brought to a meeting of the Environment Committee. Subject to the outcome of this meeting a full public consultation on the final master plan will then take place.

Detailed information HERE