Ferret, like a lot of other people was initially pleased to see the “Free Legal Advice” that has been available to the residents of Hemsworth, Kinsley and Fitzwilliam for some time now.
However, the wording on the latest long overdue newsletter, seems to tell a different story.
“This service is funded by Hemsworth Town Council”
Ferret is aware that Citizens Advice is a charity which states on their website that it offers “free, confidential and impartial advice to the citizens of Wakefield District”
Also, there are an amazing number of solicitors out there who will already provide an initial appointment to those seeking help at no charge, to ascertain if there is any way they can be of further service.
To Ferret this sounds an amazingly similar service to the one now being provided by Hemsworth Town Council, first session free, then the client pays.
Ferret then thought about the words on the latest rewritten self praising newsletter from our council: “This service is funded by Hemsworth Town Council”
When looking at the accounts of Independent Hemsworth Town Council, this “free” service is actually paid at a cost of around £5880 per year.
The cost is obviously paid for by us the precept payers, this works out at nearly £50 per hour.
Please remember that it is the “Independent” Hemsworth Town Councillors led by Chair Mr Jim Kenyon, who for years have shouted from the rooftops, about paying for services “twice” or being “Double Rated” from Wakefield Council. Yet are paying solicitors’ firms to provide a service to us that they already provide for free, that can also be received free from an Independent local charity.
Ferret thinks they must be laughing all the way to the Bank, in a very similar way to the Solicitors in the upcoming Court case against Saul Construction Limited.
The Solicitors, Richard Buxton who Jim Kenyon would have people believe are working on a no win no fee basis, yet are actually charging YOU at least £148000…
Just like “we won’t take no for an answer” they shouted from the rooftops. What happened, they took NO for an answer, then asked for volunteers to do the work and even used our money to buy machinery to do the work. Well done Kenyon and co, always talks and says what he thinks people want to hear then does what he wants to do with our money. Looks like once again jumped into providing a “service” without any business planning or simple checks to see what was already available and free to be used. There’s also another “benefit’ from this scheme and it’s not for us who pay for it. The solicitors involved will have potential customers coming to them now and without the need for costly advertising, as we seem to be providing that out of our pockets. Well done Bodger another own goal on our behalf.
There’s always a catch, a half truth or usually a full blown lie with anything that Bodger Kenyon does. The legal advice from Buxton’s so so good originally that Bodger did say the case was no win no fee, then over the months the odds of winning have fallen while the costs have risen, now £148,000 and expected to go still higher. That actually tells you the proper odds of winning. Free legal advice always comes at a cost one way or another, but this just highlights the business incompetence of this team to be in effect subsidising solicitors with our money for something they would have provided free at their own expense.
Did they ask the solicitors if they want any carpets removing? I hear Eccles’ house clearing, that HTC is now a subsidiary company of, offer a good service at no cost to client’s in privileged positions.
ill thought out as usual, may look good on paper and to shout about but it just shows exactly why all Kenyons schemes end in disaster. He hasn’t a clue about business or much else for that matter. Time to wake up those councillors who he has wrapped around his evil fingers and send this idiot packing
In regards to CAB their services are already free to use from their office in King Street in Wakefield and no doubt they will be part funded by WMDC so once again paying twice
The word “free” is used a lot by the cabal of headless chickens. Like the free farm building that ended up costing thousands….like the free parking at the farmers site , which cost thousands again to clear and then went on to be chargeable to people. Like the free donkeys (what happened to the poor things) that needed to be fed and looked after and would no doubt would have been two or three quid a ride. The only people being taken for a ride is this community while ever this bunch of robdogs are at the helm.