Community Right to Challenge corporate arrangements
Jed Keenan made this Freedom of Information request to Redbridge Borough Council This request has been closed to new correspondence. Contact us if you think it should be reopened.
Dear Sir/Madam,
What is the procedure for making an expression of interest under the Localism Act 2011, and where is it publicised on the corporate website? May I also be sent their contact details of the officer delegated with responsibility for overseeing expressions of interest in utilising the community right to challenge?
Yours faithfully,
Mr. Jed Keenan
Dear Mr Keenan,
I acknowledge your request for information received on 24th December 2012.
The London Borough of Redbridge is in the process of pro-actively publishing the datasets of information that it holds on its website, Redbridge i. Some of the information will be exempt under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 or Data Protection Act 1998, and this will be removed or redacted. You may wish to look at the website to see if the information you are requesting is already available – you can search the datasets using a user friendly tool the London Borough of Redbridge has developed called Datashare and, for your convenience, this is a link to that tool: http://data.redbridge.gov.uk/ .
Please be aware that under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (“the Act”) a public body has 20 working days following the date of receipt within which to respond to a request for information.
If appropriate, the information may be provided in paper copy, normal font size. If you require alternative formats, e.g. language, audio, large print, etc. then please let me know.
For your information, the Act defines a number of exemptions that may prevent release of the information you have requested. There will be an assessment and if any of the exemption categories apply then the information will not be released. You will be informed if this is the case, including your rights of appeal.
If the information you request contains reference to a third party then the third party may be consulted prior to a decision being taken on whether or not to release the information to you. You will be informed if this is the case.
There may a fee payable for the information requested. This will be considered and you will be informed if a fee is payable. In this event the fee must be paid before the information is processed and released. The 20 working day time limit referred to above is suspended until receipt of the cleared payment.
If you have any queries or concerns then please contact the Information Officer at London Borough of Redbridge, Town Hall, PO Box 2, High Road, Ilford, Essex, telephone 0208 708 2331, e-mail [Redbridge Borough Council request email]
Further information is also available from the Information Commissioner at:
Information Commissioner's Office
Wycliffe House
Water Lane
Wilmslow
Cheshire
SK9 5AF
Telephone: 08456 30 60 60 or 01625 54 57 45
www.informationcommissioner.gov.uk
Yours sincerely,
Corporate FOI Team
(T) 020 8708 2161
(F) 020 8708 2376
Dear Mr Keenan,
Your request for information regarding making an expression of interest
under the Localism Act 2011 has now been considered.
You asked: What is the procedure for making an expression of interest
under the Localism Act 2011, and where is it publicised on the corporate
website? May I also be sent their contact details of the officer delegated
with responsibility for overseeing expressions of interest in utilising
the community right to challenge?
I can tell you that on 11th September 2012 our Cabinet agreed a series of
Localism Act 2011 all Chief Officer delegations, which will mean that the
Chief Officer for the Service Area for which the community right to
challenge expression of interest is expressed will be empowered to respond
and they will be managing the process for their own service. A procedure
for making an expression of interest is therefore not available on the
corporate website.
I would therefore ask that you let me know which London Borough of
Redbridge service(s) you have interest in and I can then refer you to the
appropriate Chief Officer. Alternatively, you may contact them directly.
To assist you, I have attached a copy of the service areas structure chart
which details the service areas and the chief officer’s names.
Please contact me if you have any queries or concerns.
If you are unhappy with the outcome of your request, you may ask for an
internal review within 20 working days of the date of this response.
Please contact the Information Officer at [1][Redbridge Borough Council request email] or Town
Hall, PO Box 2, High Road, Ilford, Essex, IG1 1DD who will arrange an
internal review of your case.
If you have a complaint about the handling of your enquiry then please
contact the Information Officer within 20 working days of the date of this
response at London Borough of Redbridge, Town Hall, PO Box 2, High Road,
Ilford, Essex, telephone 0208 708 2331, e-mail [2][Redbridge Borough Council request email].
If you consider the outcome of the London Borough of Redbridge’s
complaints procedure is not satisfactory you also have a right of appeal
to the Information Commissioner at:
Information Commissioner's Office
Wycliffe House
Water Lane
Wilmslow
Cheshire
SK9 5AF
Telephone: 08456 30 60 60 or 01625 54 57 45
[3]www.informationcommissioner.gov.uk
Yours sincerely,
Jackie Lammin
Senior Business Support Officer
Corporate FOI Team
(T) 020 8708 2161
(F) 020 8708 2376
Hello Ms Lammin,
You have described the procedures for making an expression of interest under the Localism Act; ‘the Chief Officer for the Service Area for which the community right to challenge expression of interest is expressed will be empowered to respond and they will be managing the process for their own service’ but then state that these procedures, now that the Cabinet agreed that there would be one for each service area, are ‘therefore not available on the corporate website’.
The act is clear, that some information needs to be located on the website, but I would assume that having this set of procedures would be on the website rather than not. It may be policy not to publicise this service but to publicly state that the Cabinet has agreed to break this law is a real surprise. I can send them an email asking them if this is true if you fancy? In fact I will as I am tired of their delegated authority being abused like this by senior officers on the Cabinet's and/or their own behalf.
Thanks for the offer to informally provide the service to me individually, but I and I am sure others would like to read about this offer or the more general offer you describe here on the corporate website.
Yours sincerely,
Mr Jed Keenan
Dear Mr Keenan,
Thank you for your email, which is receiving consideration.
Regards,
Jackie Lammin
Senior Business Support Officer
Corporate FOI Team
(T) 020 8708 2161
(F) 020 8708 2376
Dear Mr Keenan,
Further to your recent email, which has now received consideration.
The Freedom of Information Act covers the provision of any recorded
information that is held by a public authority and therefore a link to the
Cabinet Report which amended the Delegated powers of Chief Officers,
referred to in our response, should have been provided to you. [1]The
report is available on our website here
There is no documented procedure available for the process of applications
submitted under the Community Right to Challenge, nor is there a standard
form that is to be used. There is therefore no further information that
can be provided to you under the Freedom of Information legislation.
However, you have also written to the Chief Executive, the Borough
Secretary and Solicitor. the Leader of the Council, the Leader of the
Labour Party Group and the Leader of the Liberal Democrat Group with
regard to this matter and I believe that the response you receive to those
communications will answer the questions you have raised.
Regards,
Jackie Lammin
Senior Business Support Officer
Corporate FOI Team
(T) 020 8708 2161
(F) 020 8708 2376
Hello Ms Lammin,
Thanks for replying this time unambiguously with confirmation that Redbridge LBC is in breach of the Localism Act 2011. It does seem to imply that Councillors, but particularly officers, are not able to uphold and to implement the will of Parliament, which would explain your reason for dancing around this question. You have my sympathy for being put in an impossible situation, firstly by senior managers and then by me for noticing their limitations. I'll forward the response from the Leader and the Chief Executive, if they bother, as if it were an apology to us both.
Yours sincerely,
Mr Jed Keenan
Jed Keenan left an annotation ()
http://moderngov.redbridge.gov.uk/docume...
"Modern Gov Redbridge" lol
Section 83 (in consultation with the relevant Cabinet Member )
Where an expression of interest is made under section 81 of this Act (community rights to challenge) to specify the minimum and maximum periods which will elapse before a procurement exercise begins and to publish this specification. (This delegation is limited to administrative functions only and the power to accept or reject an expression of interest on its merits is not hereby delegated)
Section 84(in consultation with the relevant Cabinet Member )
To modify any expression of interest made under section 81 of this Act (community rights to challenge), to specify the maximum period that will elapse between receiving an expression of interest and notification of the Council’s decision in respect of it, to publish details of that specification, to give notice of the period within which a decision will be made in respect of such an expression, to give notice of the decision in respect of such an expression and, if it is modified or rejected, to give reasons, and to publish any such notification. (This delegation is limited to administrative functions only and the power to accept or reject an expression of interest on its merits is not hereby delegated)
Jed Keenan left an annotation ()
The one example of information on the website:
http://www2.redbridge.gov.uk/cms/busines...
Redbridge Council has a good track record of working with community, voluntary groups and residents to make a difference in their communities. The council has successfully done so using a number of community engagement tools that enable it to consult effectively with the local community.
The Localism Bill includes ‘Community right to challenge and community right to Bid’ enables voluntary, community groups and social enterprises to express an interest in running local services. Small groups can also come together to form consortiums enabling them to apply to deliver local services. This marketing exercise is aimed at encouraging those groups to give an expression of interest in the Woodbine Cherry
Tree Café, currently managed by Redbridge Council.
lotus left an annotation ()
Jed, I wonder if you saw
09 June 2011, Council prosecutes workers for fraud
YELLOW ADVERTISER TODAY | NEWS | Council prosecutes ...
www.jobs-thurrock.co.uk/News.cfm?id=2126......
Council prosecutes workers for fraud. Thursday, 09 June 2011. By Pat Jones. WHISTLEBLOWERS shopped 26 council workers over alleged fraud last year.
Link is not working...I do have the cutting somewhere - as I recall, apparently the Redbridge Council prosecuted its own staff for fiddling payments made by Redbridge residents which cost each of the 100,000 residents over a £100 each equivalent of their Council Tax - thats around £10,000,000 (£10 million) that disappeared into the pockets of their employees. How many of these were subjected to criminal prosecution in the Redbridge Magistrates Court and how many are still in work in the same job is unclear.
However, I have written to the Council making some suggestions for improvements such as making the Fullwell Cross Leisure Centre available free of charge for about 4 hours a day "Happyfour" when it is mostly empty so that people who don't have the money can get access and improve their health - but it fell on deaf ears. I also suggested happy hours for free travel so people can get around on buses which are otherwise empty - no change
The Council Tax is being used inefficiently and the Redbridge residents get nothing of it back except bin collection and recycling. The people need accountability and opportunities for their input for spending every penny of their money, otherwise it is theft and fraud against the people. It is no longer service provision, it is extortion.
Why did Councils get told "You need to save £25 million" last year and "£10 million this year" when they know that amount is accounted for by theft by employees and inefficiently run services.
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Jed Keenan left an annotation ()
There is no response.