A Derbyshire action group feels residents have been having an ‘extremely frustrating’ time during a long wait for financial information from a parish council concerning the running of a costly leisure centre.
The Creswell Heritage and Wellbeing Centre scheme, on Colliery Road, was originally funded through a number of organisations including Bolsover District Council and Elmton-with-Creswell Parish Council and it finally opened after long delays caused by the pandemic, rising costs and the developer falling into administration.
But since opening in April, 2023, the centre has been reportedly running at a loss under the parish council and during further efforts to address matters the council held a confidential meeting on December 12 behind closed doors much to the frustration of residents.
Christine Hope, Chairperson of Creswell and Elmton Residents Action Group, told the council: “This has been an extremely frustrating time for parish residents and in our view we have been subjected to a very long period over years without full and accurate financial information that should have been made available in the public domain well before the previous [parish council] clerk resigned in April 2024.”
The parish council originally borrowed £2m from the Public Loans Board to complete the centre scheme and the district council’s development company Dragonfly had to step in to finish the project.
Elmton-with-Creswell Parish Council has since been struggling with the centre during a difficult economic climate and it increased its council tax precept for the 2024/25 financial year by 93.2per cent to help with running and equipment costs, wages and bills and it recently set up a Trustee Board to oversee the scheme.
The parish council’s new clerk advised at a meeting in November that the parish council had a total of 34 invoices with a total of £132,191.02 which required payment with the oldest two invoices dating from 2022 and 2023.
She explained that the vast majority of the parish council’s debt related to one supplier and the main debt, relating to 22 invoices with a total o £124,573.61. is owed to Bolsover District Council.
Ms Hope, of the Creswell and Elmton Residents Action Group, thanked the parish council’s new clerk for her ‘excellent work’ since November 5 and she has also thanked the Derbyshire Association of Local Councils and the National Association of Local Councils for calling the Extraordinary Meeting of the parish council which was held on December 12.
However, Ms Hope was disappointed that the public and residents had not been allowed into the Extraordinary Meeting which was held behind closed doors.
She also argued the council’s published accounts have been incomplete for the public to consider and that her group’s questions to the council have remained unanswered from a second accounts scrutiny visit on September 9.
Ms Hope also claims a response to a Freedom of Information request to the parish council for full details of correspondence regarding the borrowing, tendering and construction periods of the centre and financial information relating to the centre from October, 2020, to July, 2024, was delayed and incomplete.
She said: “Ever since the parish council took the decision in January, 2024, to increase our parish precept by 93.2per cent without any consultation with residents, we have been consistently trying to get an accurate and detailed financial picture on what exactly has happened regarding the Heritage and Well-being Centre and the parish finances as a whole going back to 2020 when the decision to borrow £2m from the Public Works Loan Board was made.”
The original £3m project to launch the centre was funded through Bolsover District Council, Elmton-with-Creswell Parish Council, Derbyshire County Council, Viridor, and the Big Local and Bolsover Partnership.
Elmton-with-Creswell Parish Council chairperson, Cllr Duncan McGregor, has stated the local community made it clear that they wanted a new leisure facility and the parish council has worked tirelessly to make the centre a reality.
Parish council Vice Chairperson, Cllr James Wells, has also said that the new Trustee Board which will oversee the centre comes with a lot of business experience and they will be writing a business plan and a growth plan with a view to increasing revenue and reducing debt.
The parish council has stated that direction was sought from DALC and NALC about what was to be discussed at the Extraordinary Meeting and this was discussed with the monitoring officer at Bolsover District Council.
Ms Hope’s concerns have been put to Elmton-with Creswell Parish Council but the council has declined to comment further at this stage.
