Kenyon: The Missing Precept Reduction, The Despicable Lies and The Deceit to our Community…

Regular readers of Ferret will recall Mr Jim Kenyon previously being asked the following question:

Where is our £200,000 reduction in precept Mr Jim Kenyon?

Mr Jim Kenyon (Chair of Independent Hemsworth Town Council) promised alongside his Independent Candidates in their manifestos back in 2019:

“When elected we will reduce your precept by over £200,000”

This was just one of many claims and allegations that Kenyon made to enable him, along with his fellow supposedly “Independent candidates” to be elected.

Ferret would now like to take a closer look at the Election Pledge that Mr Jim Kenyon and each and every one of his “Independent” colleagues made to every Householder and voter that he would reduce the precept by £200,000 in the first year.

A fantastic amount and well worth having, and no doubt many would have thought that when casting their votes.

To enable such a reduction in precept, it should have meant that the costings along with the Business plan and feasibility study and the implications, financial and otherwise to jobs, staffing structures and service provision, to undertake such a massive reduction would have been fully undertaken and available to be put in place when they took up office.

Yet what actually happened?

Money, our money was thrown at converting the Lakeside café, the pursuing of very costly vendettas and legal cases along with the unilateral decision to reclaim the Kirkby Road sports site and the expensive Vengaboys concert was instigated to name but a few.

Yet no mention of his much-publicised precept reduction of £200,000.

Our Council Financial reserves were plundered, but not for our reduction of £200,000.

To go on a spend spend spend spree as did Mr Kenyon’s Council, would actually require an increase in Budget year on year, and this was later confirmed in an email to all Councillors by the Town Clerk, Mr Alan Draper.

Our Precept, the money we pay, the money required to run the Council, has actually risen year on year since 2019, and Hemsworth Town Council has benefited as shown below

The Precept income in 2019 under Labour: £730,000

The Precept income in 2020 under Independents: £749,386

The Precept income in 2021 under Independents: £758,888

The Precept in 2022 under Independents: £758,888

Luckily for us, due to new homes being built in our community, which incidentally Mr Kenyon has consistently opposed, the effect of his spending spree has been partially offset to the householders of this Township.

So far from reducing our precept, Kenyon and his fellow supporting councillors have increased our precept and actually hidden this by not lowering and passing on the benefit to us of more households contributing to the total running costs.

Again, they are raiding our monetary reserves to top up their shortfall, the money needed to continue their increased spending.

The continual raiding of reserves to hide overspending of budgets cannot continue forever and one day the reserves will be gone, the piggy bank will be left empty, perhaps Mr Kenyon can understand it better spelt out in more simplistic terms.

After all, this is the man who was going to spend the £50,000 section 106 money that was already spent 6 years ago, twice.

So, a big promise made of a reduction in precept of £200,000 to our Township yet no cost savings put in place of any type or kind, to enable that to be a practical reality. The opposite in fact, a sixties pub created, with huge ongoing losses, year on year, madcap schemes and we can’t forget the Vengas.

Spending that couldn’t even be sustained by using £200,000 from the reserves for one year never mind sustaining that reduction year on year without a business plan of how they were going to achieve it and matching outgoings to income being received.

No Business plans, increased spending, of every imaginable and unimaginable type, all without feasibility studies also, our money used and thrown away like confetti.

No “due Diligence” used and for 3 years no reduction of £200,000

Precept income in 2019 under Labour: £730,000.  Kenyon’s pledge of precept £530,000

2020 Kenyon’s precept £749,386

2021 Kenyon’s precept £758,888

2022 Kenyon’s precept £758,888

At the Finance Meeting held on 20 January 2022, Mr Alan Draper, Clerk Independent Hemsworth Town Council stated that the Precept would need to INCREASE by £53,212 in the upcoming year, just to “stand still”.

So much for a streamlined Kenyon council running on £200,000 per year less.

Luckily for Independent Hemsworth Town Council (and us) there has been an increase in the number of households in the Township paying towards the Precept which totals £18,999 but they will also have to use £34,213 of our reserves again, to ensure the Precept levied will remain unchanged.

However: Mr Kenyon who is never short of words, unless challenged about driving the Digger, tried to blame the shut down during the Covid pandemic, for not reducing the precept, however this again turned out to be false.

Hemsworth Town Council actually were financially better off during the lock down due to Government grants and the furlough scheme etc. and the reduced services they were providing.

The receiving of money in this way will also require investigation at the appropriate time.

Just one more lie to try to defend the indefensible of lying to this community.

So, in 2019 we were promised a Precept by the Independents of £530,000 if they were elected.

Since 2019 we have actually paid an ADDITIONAL £677,162 to Independent Hemsworth Town Council in Precept, based on their own stated figures of the precept they would levy, contrary to the election pledges made by Mr Kenyon and his “Independent Councillors” to this community.

Where is our “streamlined Council” running on £200,000 per year less Mr Kenyon?

Just where has all this additional money, you said you didn’t need, gone Mr Kenyon?