Trustees of Charitable Land

The request was successful.

Dear Sheffield City Council,

Land at Blacka Moor was gifted to the public of Sheffield in 1933. Sheffield City Council takes on the role of charitable trustees. I would like to know how the trustees have exercised their duties in relation to Blacka Moor and monitored the management of that land by the lessees, Sheffield Wildlife Trust, over the last three years.
Please list all contacts with Sheffield Wildlife Trust by officers and managers which dealt with Blacka’s management in the form of meetings, correspondence, including electronic messages and phone calls. Please include details, at least in summary form, of the content of those contacts. Please also include records of funds transferred from Sheffield City Council to Sheffield Wildlife Trust.
Please contact me if this request needs clarification.

Yours faithfully,

Neil Fitzmaurice

FOI, Sheffield City Council

Dear Mr Fitzmaurice

Thank you for your recent Freedom of Information request.

This has been forwarded to the appropriate council service and you should expect to receive a reply within 20 working days.

For more information you can visit https://www.sheffield.gov.uk/foi

Please do not hesitate to contact us again if you have any further questions or queries.

Yours sincerely,

Customer Services
Sheffield City Council
Floor 2 Howden House,
1 Union Street,
Sheffield
S1 2SH
Telephone: 0114 2734567
Website: www.sheffield.gov.uk

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Dear Sheffield City Council,

I sent in a Freedom of Information request to Sheffeild City Council on 21st January on the role of the Council as trustees of the charitable land at Blacka Moor.

I have not yet had a response. By law there should have been a prompt response and by 18th February.

Could you please let me know the current status of this request?

Yours faithfully,

Neil Fitzmaurice

FOI, Sheffield City Council

Dear Neil Fitzmaurice

Thank you for your email regarding your Freedom of Information request.

The appropriate council service has been contacted requesting that they look into this matter.

For more information you can visit https://www.sheffield.gov.uk/foi

Please do not hesitate to contact us again if you have any further questions or queries.

Yours sincerely,
Customer Services
Sheffield City Council
Floor 2 Howden House
1 Union Street,
Sheffield
S1 2SH
Telephone: 0114 2734567
Website: www.sheffield.gov.uk

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Neil Fitzmaurice

Dear Sheffield City Council,

Please pass this on to the person who conducts Freedom of Information reviews.

I am writing to request an internal review of Sheffield City Council's handling of my FOI request 'Trustees of Charitable Land'.

I have had no proper response to this FoI request

A full history of my FOI request and all correspondence is available on the Internet at this address: https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/t...

Yours faithfully,

Neil Fitzmaurice

FOI, Sheffield City Council

Dear Neil Fitzmaurice

Thank you for your recent email regarding your Freedom of Information request.

I have emailed the appropriate Council Service requesting that they look into this matter.

Please do not hesitate to contact us again if you have any further questions or queries.

Yours sincerely,
Customer Services
Sheffield City Council
Floor 2 Howden House,
1 Union Street,
Sheffield
S1 2SH
Telephone: 0114 2734567
Website: www.sheffield.gov.uk

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Heeley Chris (DEL PWC), Sheffield City Council

22 Attachments

Dear Neil,

 

I am writing to you in reference to your Freedom of Information request
concerning how “Sheffield City Council as trustees of Blacka Moor have
exercised their duties in relation to the land and monitored the
management of that land by the lessees, Sheffield Wildlife Trust, over the
last three years.” 

 

Firstly apologies for the delay in responding to this request. It was not
forwarded to me as promptly as would normally be the case, but I hope my
reply provides you with the information you require.

 

Council Officers retain a regular dialog with Sheffield Wildlife Trust
regarding Blacka Moor and other sites that the trust manages on the City
Council’s behalf. This dialog usually take places at the quarterly Living
Don Partnership meetings Chaired by the Wildlife Trust. I have attached
the agendas that we hold for the last 3 years for these meetings. The
discussions surrounding the SCC sites normally takes place after the main
agenda items and only involves SCC and SWT staff. As a result the minutes
of the Living Don partnership meetings are not particularly helpful in
responding to your request. This was picked up as a potential weakness in
our monitoring in July 2013, and as a result notes are now taken by one of
our Ecology staff that specifically relate to SCC sites and forwarded to
Karen Lewis our Community Partnerships Manager (copy of July 2013 meeting
notes attached.)

 

Karen Lewis is also responsible for the monitoring of the annual Service
Level Agreement with Sheffield Wildlife Trust (and other environmental
organisations) which is linked to the management of Blacka Moor and other
SCC sites along with their delivery against the key outcomes of the Cities
Green and Open Spaces Strategy.  The payments SWT have had from the
Council in relation to this Funding Agreement in the last 3 years are as
follows:

 

2011/12          £21,250

2012/13          £19,125

2013/14          £19,125

 

I have attached a copy of the current Funding agreement for 2014/15 for
information. The monitoring associated with this agreement involves
quarterly reports from the Wildlife Trust. I have attached the quarterly
reports and annual reports that we hold for the last 3 years.

 

The site is also subject to the Sheffield Standard Assessment that is
required of all SCC green and open spaces. I have attached the latest
assessment which was completed in part by one of our ecology staff.

 

One method of monitoring and ensuring accountability that has not happened
in the last three years has been the annual report to the relevant
Scrutiny Board. This has not happened for a variety of reasons but I am
very clear that it needs to be reintroduced this year. Clearly this report
to Scrutiny is much broader than just Blacka Moor but it is an important
tool in ensuring transparency and accountability for Sheffield City
Council’s open space sites that are managed through a long term lease to a
third party.  

 

Finally, in compiling the information for your FOI, I have come to the
opinion that greater annual monitoring of the condition of our leased
sites is required. As a result my Ecology Team will complete an annual
assessment of the condition of Blacka Moor (and other 3^rd party leased
sites) which will feed into the following years action plan and funding
agreement.

 

I trust that this answers your query.

If you are unhappy with the service you have received in relation to your
request and wish to make a complaint, you should write to Mr Michael
Crofts, Director of Business, Strategy & Regulation, Floor 4 Howden House,
Union Street, Sheffield S1 2SH.

If you are not content with the outcome of your complaint, you may apply
directly to the Information Commissioner for a decision.  Generally, the
Commissioner cannot make a decision unless you have exhausted our
complaints procedure.  The Information Commissioner can be contacted at:
The Information Commissioner's Office, Wycliffe House, Water Lane,
Wilmslow, Cheshire SK9 5AF.

 

Chris

Chris Heeley

Head of Countryside and Environment

Tel: 0114 2734285

[mobile number]

E-mail: [email address]

 

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Neil Fitzmaurice

Dear Chris (DEL PWC),

Thanks for the information and your explanation.
It's clear there are areas of concern and that transparency of the process is an issue.
I'll be writing to you separately very soon.
It's possible that I could be asking for more information.

Yours sincerely,

Neil Fitzmaurice