Ferret has been looking into Hemsworth Waterpark and Councillor Ian Womersley’s seemingly increasing urgency to move it from its current status of being owned by YOU the precept payer and moving it into a trust.
For those of my readers that are unaware, Hemsworth Waterpark was created with YOUR money, following the Miners’ strike of 1984 – 85.
This was to give the residents of this area a much-needed leisure and recreational facility that was on the door step, which was available for all residents to access and particularly children, to enjoy.
In over 25 years, Ferret can find no records of any Hemsworth Town Council, whether controlled by Labour or the Independents even thinking about offloading YOUR beautiful asset – until now.
In actual fact, the last Labour Hemsworth Town Council inserted clauses into its “Standing Orders” to further protect all our valuable assets.
Although these standing orders were not legally binding on the Council, they went further and agreed to be bound by the will of the residents, and agreed to put any proposal out to referendum and be bound by that decision.
In 2019, Independent Hemsworth Town Council led by Mr Jim Kenyon removed those protective clauses and are now proceeding rapidly to place YOUR Waterpark in a trust.
There is only one person that Ferret is aware of, who has stated ever stated, that he wants possession of the Waterpark and that person is Independent Councillor Gordon Eccles.
This is the same Independent Councillor Gordon Eccles who is a Key holder to the Waterpark access gates at Hoyle mill road outside his home.
Ferret believes the current spending activities of Independent Hemsworth Town Council are designed to bring it to bankruptcy, thus force the sale of our assets to pay the debtors monies that it will no doubt owe at the current rate of spending.
Ferret believes the scheduled Venga boys concert is also for this purpose and it wouldn’t surprise Ferret, that for “security purposes” it will be proposed (probably in secret), that the whole perimeter of the park is securely fenced off at an enormous cost to us the precept payers.
Still it will save Councillor Gordon Eccles a job and of course the cost of tens of thousands of pounds.
Why our assets are not safe in a trust – Coming soon In Part 2
Will we ever get a written response to our questions submitted to Independent Hemsworth Town Council and Mr Kenyon from the meeting held on 12 October 2021?
They’re already in the process of offloading our assets the allotments in Fitzwilliam a very very large piece of land . They’ve instructed estate agents in Wakefield to handle the sale and the sheer size of that land will bring in a very large sum of money. Why are they selling this land now the question begs answering. They wanted to sell land near the Newstead allotments again why? Is it because they think this is the right time to dispose of OUR assets or is it because THEY are financially incompetent and will need that money to balance their books that they seem to manage with creative accountancy. I have no dog in this race I belong to no political party I said when they started throwing money around at that old pub this ain’t going to end well they act like drunken mad men in a casino it needs to stop. Given their way there will be none of our assets left and a lot of signs on gates saying PRIVATE PROPERTY TRESPASSERS WILL BE PROSECUTED.
Community trust eh ? There is one key word here …TRUST… Lovely word..isn’t it ? This kind of “ring fencing asset ” tactic is used by selecting representatives(often councillors) to have control of the future of places/spaces for example Hemsworth Water Park !! I suspect this could mean that the “trustees” get their hands on OUR Water park for free!! Then take all the decisions for its future. Ask yourself one question…DO YOU TRUST THE TRUSTEES ??? and we all know who these people will be dont we !!!
i have asked under f.o.i. any flans the cabal have of securing our asset and if anyone is intending or showing an interest of purchasing the wp also who paid for farmers car park development n if ge received any monies re parking income also which councillors approved/ approves of it theses were im told to be asked at the 9/9 meeting im waiting with bated breath also asked who proposed a band from nottingham n again which councillors approved and why as i cannot see the sense in a marching band and the cost incurred along with traffic disruption/policing which will also incur a cost
Something needs doing and needs doing quickly. At the hands of HTC and WMDC with its neglect and using us as a dumping ground for its cast offs, Hemsworth is becoming a no go zone. I’ve lived here all my life and right now I have never felt as unsafe and as much like I don’t want to live in the hemsworth area anymore. Drug dealing, car chases which I witnessed the other week all reported to both the police and to IW. IW since disabling his fb account is suddenly very slow to reply and his replies are very much uninterested sounding.
The WP is not a private gentleman’s club for the likes of Kenyon and Eccles for them to use as money making opportunities for them and their arse licking cronies. I know people who do not come from the hemsworth area, people who would happily pay for entry into the wp. People I’ve spoken to in the past who have come from Leeds/Sheffield. The WP is/could/has been an asset to us. How many small towns own such a facility? I gave it a go a couple of times after they started doing meals again.
First time was at the beginning of its reopening, Sunday carvery. We arrived at 1pm one hour after service began. They were running out of veg and I overheard a conversation where they were going to drive down to tesco to buy more veg!!! Benefit of the doubt perhaps they didn’t anticipate the demand. But come on going to purchase the amount of veg needed from a supermarket. Tables weren’t clean, floors dirty. Second time visited with my grandsons bought lunch for them burger chips the usual stuff for kids burger tasted cheap and nasty. Probably the sort of thing you’d pay a couple of quid for 20 from the frozen section. Basically the meals were substandard.
Third met my son and partner and grandsons for a drink at the windsurfer, in my son’s words it’ll make a change and it’s nice weather. They’d both been at work all day. Well disgusting. Kenyon IW stood drinking, tables covered in food and glasses, we found a table which was clear. We ordered drinks and went to sit down with them. My son said his drink did not taste like it should. It wasn’t off but he was convinced it wasn’t the drink advertised on the pumps. We were swarmed with wasps due to surrounding tables. Kenyon’s son came out to clear a couple of tables. When walking back inside dropped half the contents of his tray on the floor and never returned to pick it up. Then the music can’t remember the song but let’s say it was x rated totally unsuitable for families and we felt like we were in the middle of some nightclub. We left.
Now this is not a post to complain about service it’s just to prove how totally incompetent these people are.
The meals they were forced to provide for the elderly during lockdown. Last week an elderly gentlemen told me that suddenly last Sunday the meal was not as good drastically reduced in size and quality. He said that maybe they had a different person doing the meals. Me cynical as I am wonders if it is a way of putting people off having them.
As I say this isn’t about poor service as such, but these people are not in office for us it’s for their own benefit. My biggest worry is that most people in the area do not subscribe to FB or to Ferret and will be blissfully unaware to all this and will be tempted to vote for Kenyon’s lick arses. Folletti has lived in the area for a long time he has a shop front that says he is a wonderful person. People will take it at face value.
Something needs doing.
I often walk past Kenyon’s wife’s bungalow. They literally think they own that street..Their grandchildren(poor kids) are often riding up and down the road in front of traffic causing traffic to brake. His wife is often out shouting at them to slow down, she is right in some cases however the children obviously think they have the right to do as they please. Kenyon’s attitude filtering down. I was once deliberately ran into by one of them with his bike. I once reported to IW(before I know what I know now) that the stench of cannabis coming from the bungalow every time I walked past was not what you would expect from someone promoting himself as a upstanding member of the public. Strangely never smelt it since!!
I’m not having a go at the children just saying that Kenyon’s dubious attitudes are filtering down.
The likes of Kenyon and his arse licks are everything that is wrong with hemsworth and it’s surrounding areas right now and the general public who are making hemsworth a dump are all of the same ilk and don’t care about hemsworth just themselves.
I’m not a political person, I don’t understand politics I don’t pretend to. But I know what is right and wrong.
Rant over, sometimes you just need to vent.
Sorry for the long post.
A very, very large piece of land in Fitzwilliam which could form a perfect recreational ground especially with how close it is to the country park. If we do need additional facilities why not in Fitzwilliam on land already owned by Hemsworth Town Council?
Even if we did trust the initial trustees – how quick and easy would it be to change them to someone else as soon as it suited the “Independents”?
Lots of very interesting questions Kevin. A marching band and road closures, on top of the already quoted figure of £80000 for the Venga Boys? When will it stop?
Agree with all being said. Looking forward to part 2 sounds as though it could be very revealing
Fair point Ferret…I wouldn’t trust this bunch to warm me up a sausage roll 😄
No need to apologise Julie. Lots of interesting information in your post, thank you for sharing it.
You can only trust a trust if the trustee are trust worthy !!
It’s like I say people do take things at face value, so if they are trustees they are to be trusted. If it says charity it has to be a good cause. If it has help in its name it must be helping. Honest John’s motors, John has to be honest. There’s a thing I and others say “if it’s in writing it must be true”
they wanting access off mainroad think they started it and let it grow over lol …im awaiting info from clerk to…think our comunity given up with our independant councilors lol cant believe kinsley voted independant councilors bull sh–…. i alwayst thought man and wife or relation could not stand stand together …why are there 3 i know off for kinsley dont yer vote just for one?
One cannot be other than cynical and suspicious at the same time as to the motives of those behind this scheme why if the previous council introduced safeguard’s for the protection of our assets and also to be bound by public referenda on the issue would you want to remove those protectections is it to strengthen them or weaken the clearly the latter in my opinion. It is now clearly obvious this is a council in name only it functions not for those who elected it but rather for a select few members of it with their own agenda. Secret meetings decisions made behind closed doors in the absence of the underlings ie the rest of the elected members to whom I say this with the greatest respect for whatever party you were elected on or the true ideal of an independent individual have some self respect stop this charade of a functioning democratic council ran by consensus and decency do the right thing and resign en mass
What I find strange is that the minutes from the HTC meeting held on 15th July where item 19 was to put the water park into a trust are not available to view yet.
Can see on the agenda for the meeting on 19th August item 23 where councillor discussed at special motion in the exclusion part of this meeting regarding the water park ….. wonder when we the residents actually get to hear what is happening,
Some councillors voted against the marching band and closure of roads
There are 3 councillors each for the 5 wards covered by the town council. There is no restriction on married couples or indeed any other family members standing for council.
plus security on the day it is after all an all ticket event will our amenity be closed to us for an event we dont even want let alone need i believe the interested future owners would like the entire venue fenced off after the success at the farmers car park development can we stop em
Under GDPR regulations some items cannot be discussed in public.
I really feel for my husband Shaun, he doesn’t tell me what has been said
Being my own person I spout off occasionally about what the council should be doing etc at him. I’m going to stop that as he is the only truly independent councillor.
When he reads this he’ll think I’ve gone soppy in my old age. He’s trying his damn best!!!
I feel They are going to run the WP into the ground, owing ££ debts that can’t be paid then sell to a bidder, we all know who that will be….
We need to get these people out and off the council before it’s too late.
The gdpa doesn’t cover lies and thievery or anything unlawful or against council regs. The whistle blowing law protects people from any action against them for exposing wrong doing.
For evil to succeed it only requires good men to remain silent and say nothing
No, but it does cover things like staff, so anything where staff are discussed, eg which staff carried out the actual burying of the waste in the waterpark, would be covered..
Incorrect Lyn, incidents that require exposing are all covered by the whistle blowing legislation. Innocent individual staff do not need to be identified publicly if they have been ordered to do something of this nature but the incident itself cannot hide behind data protection to protect the guilty.
The minutes are now available to view for the HTC meeting on 15th July.
It has proved incredibly difficult to legally get my hands on any information about the illegal burial of waste at the waterpark, something I’ve been pursuing since April and reporting on whenever I have an update.
I’ve kept asking questions via legal avenues and just been fobbed off again and again.
I have to say, Ferret should be an investigative journalist, with the quality of work they have put in on this website.
Lyn may I wish you the utmost good luck and endeavour in your task in trying to bring some semblance of truth and accountability to these scoundrels.