Wilcox Moves to Put Manor Residents Into Liquidation

[Mr Mister]

Sound fair enough..

Not sure if I agree totally.. honest answer I am not sure.

I agree the trustees are also legally responsible, but i would think as manager she has certain legal responsibilities too.

As for asset stripping, either way, if she has the blessing of the board,then she's well within her rights to sell anything at whatever cost, I would have thought.

[misinformed]

I think we all know that nothing is going to happen now.. other than the fact AW has put MRA into liquidation (allegedly) .. the trustees, wont speak up, come on when AW tells Carol to jump she says how high.. and as for the kitchen staff who are on the board they wont speak up for they work there... we all know what the right thing is to do, but jobs are in short supply and for some its better the devil you know........ sad but true...
all we can hope that some good may still come out of this (ok as I raise my eyes to the sky I wont hold my breath), but 25yrs a lady set this charity up in her kitchen, her hard work has to go on surely, how I don't know and I wish I did...........  

[Hartlepudlion]

Don't forget that the MR is a charity and WCNE is a community limited company. Charities are overseen by the Charities Commission and community companies by the Department for Industry and Skills. Charities have trustees, companies a Chairman and board. Anyone know who the Chairman is and was if different?

[misinformed]

I not a 100% but isn't that man of the radio Hartlepool now the chairperson?? of WCNE/connected care  ? Jason Anderson.. like I said I not a 100% sure but im sure someone on here will put me right

[DRiddle]

all we can hope that some good may still come out of this (ok as I raise my eyes to the sky I wont hold my breath), but 25yrs a lady set this charity up in her kitchen, her hard work has to go on surely, how I don't know and I wish I did

I have a suggestion to that misinformed. But I fear it's far too sensible for our council to actually do.

Manor school will be getting essentially what will amount to a total rebuild/major refurbishment by 2015 under the governments Priority School Building Programme (PSBP) funding.

That's a perfect opportunity to take direction from the residents in the Manor area to establish what they actually want from a residents association and community orientated provision in advance of the build.

The school will obviously be built with a library, catering facilities, sports facilities, office space etc etc. Done correctly, it's absolutely possible to incorporate the major services of a residents association into the school. I know that to be true because I know educational establishments that do it in various respects.

In fact, the major provision currently still being offered by MRA is a pre-school breakfast club. A lot of schools already offer that provision without the need to contract it out to a secondary service.

There's an ideal opportunity for the good work of the lady who started MRA to be formally recognised and a genuine legacy for future generations of people on that live on the estate to be established.

Schools have full audit trails, are subjected to various inspections and audits regularly, their staff are vetted, police checked, suitably qualified, paid appropriately etc etc.

That would be an ideal way to prevent any 3rd sector organisation from becoming a "Vehicle for self interest". It already happens in other boroughs and has been shown to be a very good model.

[Stig of the Seaton Dump]

What an awesome suggestion ...get the professionals to do it.

I know Fens has an excellent and affordable breakfast club, run by unsung heroine to the parent Mrs. Fox.
I guess people outside of Fens School have not heard of Mrs Fox, pity really as she deserves a medal for her attitude and hard work.

[fred c]

The earliest record we have uncovered of communication between Wilcox and the potential liquidators is dated 9th May 2013 although there are indications of even earlier communications with the insolvency practitioners.  At the time, all of the Trustees would/should have approved the actions taken by the Wilcox as the Trustees are the only ones who can legally sanction such action. This would have included Council Chairman, Stephen Akers- Belcher and Councillor Paul Beck who were still Trustees at the time. The implication is that both Councillors were aware of moves to liquidate the association as far back as early May weeks before the HBC Audit Report was even published

This makes a Complete Mockery of the decision by HBC to give Wilcox & MRA the 2 months period of grace to put things in order.

I wonder if Tom Mitchell has been given this information he is, apparently, still accepting evidence from members of the public in connection with the Public Inquiry ?

[not4me]

so while SAB was voting to condemn employers who pay less than the minimum wage he was at the same time working with Wilcox to deny the tribunal winners their compensation. Yep - that just about sums up the present labour lot.

[Missy K]

I not a 100% but isn't that man of the radio Hartlepool now the chairperson?? of WCNE/connected care  ? Jason Anderson.. like I said I not a 100% sure but im sure someone on here will put me right

This would surprise me if Jason was, but in a prominent position as he is, has the Hartlepool Post and Putting Hartlepool First tried contacting him to get on the radio? 

[SRMoore]

As far as I know Jason Anderson has no connection to MR/WCNE.

As for a representative of the 'Hartlepool Post' being invited onto Radio Hartlepool... I think they have burnt every possible bridge that led to that happening twice over.

I'm sure PHF will be invited to contribute if the station decides to run election prices again in the future though.

[marky]

Jason Anderson is on the Board of Who Cares (NE) but is a relatively recent addition and Ged Hall is on the board of Radio Hartlepool.

[DRiddle]

Moving away from all that and getting back to the issue of MRA potentially being liquidated, I think my idea about the school is a goer. Everyone knows practically everyone at HBC reads this site. Everyone knows i've upset factions of the Labour group recently.

But that aside, in terms of genuinely helping the residents of the estate, i'd be interested in hearing from ANYONE who is an elected councillor who reads this sites opinion on the idea.

[Mr Mister]

Jason Anderson is on the Board of Who Cares (NE) but is a relatively recent addition and Ged Hall is on the board of Radio Hartlepool.

He was a director for W.C.N.E. for about 4 weeks, but once he saw all the crap hitting the papers, he did more research resigned.

Fair play to him too, he's had enough s**t of his own, without other people too.

Again, I don't spend my time looking lovingly into his eyes, I simply messaged him this morning and asked.

[The Great Dictator]

Jason is no longer on the board of either MRA or WCNE, i think he lasted 3 weeks then quit..

[for fawkes sake]

Schools are usually the biggest investment made in our communities and it has always baffled me why they are not used more as a central community resource especially out of school hours. Some schools do allow their facilities to be used on an evening but we have barely scratched the surface of what is possible.