the rifty is it a charity or is it not ?

[Owen Jones]

They have gotten away with it for so long because no one would ask these questions and they also thought everyone else was stupid and wouldn't see through their misdemeaners

whats to say im not a councillor at present ?

[Owen Jones]

They have gotten away with it for so long because no one would ask these questions and they also thought everyone else was stupid and wouldn't see through their misdemeaners

As a 'Newbie' you could be forgiven for your statement, however this forum has been asking pertinent questions of our council and councillors for around 15 years, to attempt to belittle the users of The Post is pointless, we have been abused on an industrial scale.

Despite it being almost impossible to gather information from HBC and even more so from councillors, The Post has had some success in exposing what goes on and has gone on for years.

Obtuse and false answers, blatant lies and mis-information, pink papering and a refusal to answer FOI requests have been a stock in trade for our council, a Peer Review Group advised HBC to become more Open, Transparent and Accountable, unfortunately that didn't happen.

In recent time years the ruling LabTor Mob have changed the towns Constitution on numerous occasions to suit there own ends, they stopped verbal public questions, restricted the time councillors had to ask and debate questions, they have in effect subverted the democratic process.

You should spend a couple of hours of your time a take a browse through the history of posts on the forum....you may learn something.

Maybe one night when I can't sleep I'll read through past posts I'm sure I'll soon nod off

[fred c]

An example...2 LabMob councillors set up a CIC company, the company was awarded £680,000 on the say so of another LabMob councillor.....12 months later the company was awarded another £200,000 plus, not long after that, 1of the councillors went to jail for her mis- management of MRA.

[mk1]

This a cheque could be made out to the initials of company (a ) and yet paid into the bank of company (b  ).

By some completely unrelated coincidence that is what Kevin Cranney did with 2  of his companies. I am sure if he had been informed that this could be a  problem and would cast doubt on his otherwise unblemished  integrity he would have immediately changed the initials of one of the  organisations.
Why did no one warn him of his unitentional mistake?

[mk1]

, 1of the councillors went to jail for her mis- management of MRA.

Not before she was given a few months  in office to destroy all the books and sell all her assets off at rock-bottom prices to  fellow Councillors running their own Firms. Come judgement day their is no record of where all the money went so corrupt councillor is convicted of a few token crimes whilst the thick end of £500,000 simply vanished.
I am sure the councillors who allowed her the extra time to  hide all the evidence sort  out the finances  had absolutely no idea she would destroy the books. Why should you be suspicious of a woman who employs all her family on huge wages and then said family start flooding Facebook with photos of their 5th Caribbean Holiday in 12 months or posting  selfies of themselves hanging out the window of a brand new Range Rover flashing their latest Rolex at the peons?
I mean its not as if they were obviously living beyond their means.......................

[mr ben]

Something stinks  and its not coming from the  landfill sites !! its coming from the rifty  ......

[Inspector Knacker]

They have gotten away with it for so long because no one would ask these questions and they also thought everyone else was stupid and wouldn't see through their misdemeaners

whats to say im not a councillor at present ?

Questioning yourself is not a good sign.

[Stig of the Seaton Dump]

They have gotten away with it for so long because no one would ask these questions and they also thought everyone else was stupid and wouldn't see through their misdemeaners

whats to say im not a councillor at present ?

This is all getting a bit "Harry" and unlikely to end well.

[fred c]

They have gotten away with it for so long because no one would ask these questions and they also thought everyone else was stupid and wouldn't see through their misdemeaners

whats to say im not a councillor at present ?

More likely a former Compositor....

[jawsbbc]

I'm sure Fred C's figure of 16K for overseeing the rifty scam is spot-on, and it set me wondering about all the other 100% tax payer funded streams of loot that are flowing into The Palace of Westbrook and feathering the nest for a couple who in a normal universe would appear to be virtually unemployable beyond things such as Grade 1 Benefits Clerk, or Short Order Cook.
Oozing it's way into the household coffers is:-
- Health Watch Manager salary
- Basic councillor allowance (x2; +31%; +2%)
- Chair of committee allowances
- Other allowances from sitting on various authority bodies
- Benefits in kind eg exclusive use of HBC's 1st class rail tkts for jaunts to bright lights
- Generous expenses ............................................ see freedom of info
Dear Hartlepool Council,



1.  I would appreciate the following information about My Cafe, located
inthe Masefield Road Community Centre, Masefield Road Hartlepool.





2.  Does HBC have any connection with the My Place Cafe? HBC own the
property and have agreed terms for a licence with Rifty Youth Project to
occupy part of the Rift House Community Building.





3.  Does HBC have any financial connections with My Place Cafe?  Non apart
from the ensuring compliance of the Licencee to fulfil their obligations
to pay for the operational costs in relation to the terms of the
agreement.





4.  Does Councillor Steven Akers Belcher have any connection with My Place
Cafe? Yes





5.  If so in what capacity is he involved with My Place Cafe ?  Food
Business Operator





6.  Is he in receipt of a salary from My Place Cafe ?

               For the purposes of section 1 of the Freedom of Information
Act this information is not held by the Council.





7.  Who is responsible for the payment of utility bills, Gas, Electric,
Water, for My Place Cafe ?  The occupier





8.  Is My Place Cafe operating as a stand alone business outwith the
Masefield Road Community Centres normal community centre functions ?

               For the purposes of section 1 of the Freedom of Information
Act this information is not held by the Council.





9.       Do all of the staff who work in My Place cafe have the relevant
certificates, ie. Food Hygiene Qualifications etc etc  Staff have
undertaken food hygiene training commensurate with their work activities.





Would anyone more in the know care to have a stab at sharing a complete list of income streams and a guesstimate at the total of OUR MONEY that ends up in their rather large ar** pockets?

[jawsbbc]

 food business operators?
What are the legal responsibilities of food handlers and food business operators?
What is a food business operator?
1. Article 3 of Regulation (EC) No 178/2002 defines ",,food business operator‟ as the natural or legal persons responsible for ensuring that the requirements of food law are met within the food business under their control".
Regulation 178/2002 provisions
We outline the key provisions for food business operators laid down in Regulation 178/2002 that apply to food business operators

Safety
Article 14 states that food shall not be placed on the market if it is unsafe. Food is deemed to be unsafe if it is:

injurious to health
unfit for human consumption
The article also indicates what factors need to be considered when determining whether food is injurious to health or unfit.

Presentation
Article 16 states that labelling, advertising and presentation, including the setting in which the food is displayed, of food shall not mislead consumers.

Traceability
Article 18 requires food business operators to keep records of the following:

food
food substances
food-producing animals supplied to their business
businesses to which their products have been supplied.
In each case, the information shall be made available to competent authorities on demand.

[Hartlepudlion]

Anybody know if the cafe has been inspected and rated by HBC's Public Protection departed?
How many stars?

[jawsbbc]

Anybody know if the cafe has been inspected and rated by HBC's Public Protection departed?
How many stars?

5 stars believe it or not
https://www.facebook.com/mycafeHartlepool/photos/a.1945746969043399/2116363511981743/?type=3&theater
My Cafe
20 August at 10:35 ·
We hire our cafe and main hall out for private functions, charity nights, family gatherings and children's parties. Call in and speak to Stephen or Lewis for more details.
https://www.facebook.com/mycafeHartlepool/photos/pcb.2195358720748888/2195358674082226/?type=3&theater

[jawsbbc]

Last summer I contacted the Charity Commission on this subject, the reply I received was...."I can find no record of the Rifty Project being a charity.......Big Fibber Beck stopped calling it a charity after complaints to the then Borough Solicitor were made about its charitable status.

Not sure if the £10k from BFB has been recorded somewhere or other, if an organisation has an income over £5k it should be registered as a charity.....according to the CC chap.

As with most things connected to HBC community premises, it's almost impossible to obtain information.

............. found this very interesting that  paul beck donated 10,306 to the rifty
TWO worthy causes in the town have each received over £10,000 each after benefiting from the Mayor's fundraising appeal.

Councillor Paul Beck, the Mayor of Hartlepool chose Macmillan Cancer Support and The Rifty Youth Project as his nominated causes during his year in civic office, which comes to an end tomorrow (Thursday 24 May).



Representatives from the two organisations met up with the Mayor and Mayoress Mary Beck – Councillor Stephen Akers-Belcher on behalf of the Rifty Youth Project and Derek Redman from Macmillan – in the Mayor's Parlour earlier this week to each receive £10,306 each.

A further £700 raised at the Mayor's recent Civic Dinner was paid directly to Macmillan Cancer Support via bank transfer, lifting the total amount raised to over £21,000.

Councillor Beck and Mrs Beck later visited the Rifty Youth project to speak to volunteers, children and young people involved and see how the money raised may be used.

Money was raised following a wide range of events during the last 12 months including a civic dinner, teddy bear tombola, car boot sales and coffee mornings.

The Mayor of Hartlepool said: "I would like to thank everyone for all the help and support in raising so much money for two very worthy causes.



"These causes are both very close to my heart and I know that the money raised will be put to excellent use here in Hartlepool, helping many of the town's residents."

Councillor Stephen Akers-Belcher commented: "We're truly grateful to the Mayor and Mayoress of Hartlepool for supporting The Rifty Youth project through their year of fundraising.

"To raise this staggering amount is a phenomenal achievement. We are so grateful that we have decided to make Paul and Mary Honorary Patrons of the Rifty in recognition of their support for the project."
https://neconnected.co.uk/mayor-raises-over-21000-for-two-town-causes/

[Inspector Knacker]

Obviously they told the donors what the money would be used for? Or didn't they?