Extraordinary meeting of Wirral Council called to discuss Girtrell Court

Extraordinary meeting of Wirral Council called to discuss Girtrell Court                                           Edited 24th March 2016 to add quote from Cllr Chris Blakeley. Edited 4th April 2016 to include a link to the Labour and Lib Dem amendments. An extraordinary meeting of all Wirral Council councillors about Girtrell Court (requested by Cllrs Chris Blakeley, Bruce Berry, … Continue reading “Extraordinary meeting of Wirral Council called to discuss Girtrell Court”

Cllr Chris Blakeley talking to his notice of motion on Girtrell Court at a meeting of Wirral Council 14th March 2016

Extraordinary meeting of Wirral Council called to discuss Girtrell Court

                                         

Cllr Chris Blakeley explaining his notice of motion on Girtrell Court to Wirral Council councillors at a public meeting 14th March 2016
Cllr Chris Blakeley talking about Girtrell Court at the Council meeting held on the 14th March 2016

Edited 24th March 2016 to add quote from Cllr Chris Blakeley.

Edited 4th April 2016 to include a link to the Labour and Lib Dem amendments.

An extraordinary meeting of all Wirral Council councillors about Girtrell Court (requested by Cllrs Chris Blakeley, Bruce Berry, Leah Fraser, Paul Hayes, Lesley Rennie and Steve Williams) is scheduled to take place starting at 6.00pm on Monday 4th April 2016. The meeting will take place in the Council Chamber at Wallasey Town Hall, Brighton Street, Seacombe, CH44 8ED.

The request for the meeting relates to an article in the Wirral Globe and statements that Cllr Chris Jones made a few days before that article was published at the Council meeting on the 14th March 2016.

A copy of the Notice of Motion proposed by twenty Conservative councillors is reproduced below (I’ve linked the bit about the Wirral Globe article to the article in question).

MOTION – GIRTRELL COURT

Proposed by Councillor Chris Blakeley
Seconded by Councillor Bruce Berry

1. Council recalls that, at the Council meeting on the 14th March, 2016, the Leader of the Council and the Cabinet Member for Adult Social Care and Public Health gave assurances that there was no timetable for closure of Girtrell Court.

2. Council noted this included a promise that Girtrell Court would remain open until such time as acceptable and alternative respite provision could be provided for users of Girtrell Court and that the Cabinet Member stated that no decision on Girtrell Court would be made until all the statutory ‘one to one’ consultations had
been completed.

3. Council is therefore deeply puzzled and disappointed that 48 hours later, in the Wirral Globe online version, the Cabinet Member announced that Girtrell Court will close at the end of August.

4. Council resolves that any budgetary decision about Girtrell Court is made in the public arena by Council as required by the Constitution of Wirral Borough Council.

Signed by:

Councillors:

Tom Anderson
Bruce Berry
David Burgess-Joyce
Chris Blakeley
Eddie Boult
Wendy Clements
David Elderton
Gerry Ellis
Leah Fraser
Jeff Green
John Hale
Paul Hayes
Andrew Hodson
Kathy Hodson
Cherry Povall
Lesley Rennie
Tracey Pilgrim
Adam Sykes
Geoffrey Watt
Steve Williams

In response to the meeting being arranged, Cllr. Chris Blakeley wrote, “In the last 14 days, we have been told, ‘yeah, but no, but maybe’ by the Cabinet Member for Adult Social Care and Health over the future of Girtrell Court.

At the same time, the Leader of the Council pledged to be open and transparent only to then delegate the decision to the Cabinet Member and Director, out of public view and with no reference to the rest of his Cabinet.

This whole sorry saga has proved to be traumatic to the staff and families; it has appalled the trade unions and ward councillors in Saughall Massie. I believe the Cabinet Member should now make it clear what, if anything, she has decided and on what evidence. Neither I, nor the families, believe the repeated claims about ‘extending choice’ – it is, in truth, about closing services.”

Both Labour and the Lib Dems have tabled amendments to the notice of motion above. The Labour amendment deletes paragraphs 3 and 4, criticises the Conservatives for calling a Council meeting about it and repeats their long running position about choice.

The Lib Dem amendment calls for the consultation findings to be shared with councillors and for greater scrutiny by councillors of any re-provision of care.

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Author: John Brace

New media journalist from Birkenhead, England who writes about Wirral Council. Published and promoted by John Brace, 134 Boundary Road, Bidston, CH43 7PH. Printed by UK Webhosting Ltd t/a Tsohost, 113-114 Buckingham Avenue, Slough, Berkshire, England, SL1 4PF.

22 thoughts on “Extraordinary meeting of Wirral Council called to discuss Girtrell Court”

  1. G’day John

    Amazing the money they can find and waste.

    Letting Wirral “Funny” Bizz get away to Portugal with £2,000,000.00.

    AdderleyDadderleyDooLally slinking off after allowing asset stripping to The Chamber Pot with his football shirt and a truck full.

    Their local propaganda sheet

    Cash available for Wirral West to celebrate Queen’s 90th birthday with street parties

    Funding boost for West Wirral community projects

    And while, The Pretend Friend’s vile missus smiling all over the front page and saying Girtrell Court will be closed.

    Not to mention Lyndale School.

    Scum bags all of them.

    Ooroo

    James

    I would like to wish everyone at Wirral the Easter they deserve.

    1. Happy Easter to you too James.

      No formal decision has yet been made yet to close Girtrell Court. Merely a decision has been made about who makes the closure decision (Cllr Chris Jones/Graham Hodkinson).

      As to Lyndale School, Wirral Council’s Cabinet decided to close Lyndale School at the end of the 2015/16 school year (so if nothing changes it will close at the end of July 2016).

      The other issue you mention about grants for street parties to celebrate the Queen’s 90th birthday, I think the aim of that is to bring communities together.

      1. G’day John

        These idiots will be voting to close fire stations next John.

        Ooroo

        James

        You didn’t mention John why the thicker than the chair, Chair of the Fudge It and Risk It Mis-Management Committee did not chair the always bizarre affair.

        When is off to see the queen?

        1. Only the councillors on the Merseyside Fire and Rescue Authority (four out of Wirral’s sixty-six) get to make such decisions.

          In answer to your question I’ve no idea.

  2. And don’t forget the 2% rise in Council Tax for Adult Social Care so if closing places down, where is this money going!

    1. The Director of Adult Social Services, Graham Hodkinson answered that question back in February at a meeting about Girtrell Court and there is a transcript of his answer here.

      However I’ll quote from his answer here too as it’s a long transcript and the right bit might be hard to find.

      "Now, there was also a question around the £2.2 million precept and sorry the 2% precept which equates to £2.2 million and what that’s going to be used for.

      Now, every year we work with all of our providers and we find out what their inflationary costs are, we find out what their pressures are as organisations.

      And this year and for the next few years, they’ve all got to meet the cost of the Living Wage, the national Living Wage. It’s an absolute requirement for them.

      The whole of that money will be used in order to pay for this sector, to pay for care. So that doesn’t give me any extra money. On top of that, I also have every year, round about £1 million worth of new people coming through with disabilities and around about £1 million worth of new people, older people coming through that need support.

      So I’ve got to find ways to make the money that I’ve got available to me to stretch further. So that’s why this plan, this whole approach is to say I need to make the money I use for respite, I need to make it stretch further and that’s simply what I’ve got to do."

  3. G’day John

    Happy Easter to you and Lenora and the rest of your gang.

    I might be wrong John but I see your work as being, brilliant, kind and christian.

    I see them as pretending to be the above but sadly failing due to their megalomania.

    I do hope they all get what they truly deserve for Easter.

    THEY VOTED TO CLOSE LYNDALE

    THEY VOTED TO CLOSE GIRTRELL COURT

    THEY VOTED TO KEEP SCHTUM (or as my spell check suggests SCROTUM) ON WIRRALGATE

    THEY VOTED TO KEEP SCHTUM (or as my spell check suggests SCROTUM) ON ADDERLEYDADDERLEYDOOLALLY AND WIRRAL “FUNNY” BIZZ AND BIG, ISUS AND WORKING NEIGHBOURHOODS.

    THEY VOTED TO KEEP SCHTUM (or as my spell check suggests SCROTUM) ON “THE SHYSTERS” ILL LEGAL DEPARTMENT IGNORING ASSET STRIPPING OF LOCKWOOD/HARBAC.

    THEY VOTED TO KEEP SCHTUM (or as my spell check suggests SCROTUM) ON ALL THE HIDDEN REPORTS, Beverley Edwards, Dave Garry, Grant (chocolate teapot) Thornton, DCLG, Rosemary & Thymme etc etc etc)

    DON’T VOTE FOR THEM.

    Ooroo

    James

    I do wish Bobby47 was still on the scene my insults are pathetic in comparison about these evil evil people.

    I look forward to seeing how many of them that have the decency to quit why would you want to be involved with

    The Blinking CEO

    Legweak

    The Shyster

    Phil the Very Very Deluded Dill

    His Ugly Twin Brother with the Comb Over from Hell

    Ankles

    The Pretend Friend

    Nurse Rat

    She who thinks they named an art gallery after her

    and of course

    The Salon Girl.

    1. Yes I miss bobby47’s comments too and I hope he will return at some future point to leaving comments on this blog.

      The readers also found his comments entertaining.

      As to the “decency to quit” as you put it. Cllr Niblock (a councillor in Bromborough ward) was not selected by the Labour party as its candidate for Bromborough ward this year.

      The Labour Party candidate for Bromborough is Warren Ward. However Cllr Niblock decided to stand as an independent in Bromborough ward against the Labour Party candidate, which means like Crabtree he’s no longer part of the Labour Group of councillors on Wirral Council (now down to 36 councillors out of 66).

      In most political parties, standing in an election against that the candidate of that political party you are a member of is usually grounds for you to be chucked out of that party and I presume that Cllr Niblock standing as an independent is connected to him no longer being part of the Labour Group.

    2. Well your favourite Stuart Kelly is standing as a candidate in Oxton ward this year. If he is elected as a councillor, maybe there will be someone willing to try and shine a light on some of the latter issues you mention?

  4. G’day John

    It is amazing to me how you can sit in chambers with these people you should be sainted.

    Their local rubbish propaganda sheet

    Former council worker ‘let down and angry’ after losing retirement gift because of budget cuts

    Probably “Phil the Very Very Deluded Dill’s” idea to get them all down to play foot golf with their artificial hips.

    Ooroo

    James

    1. Well I have received a pay rise this year. I now earn a three figure sum a week.

      However, on the subject of chambers, I’m involved as the Appellant in two tribunal cases (First-Tier Tribunal (Information Rights)) involving information requests (one is a FOI request to Wirral Council, the other an EIR request to Merseyside Fire and Rescue Authority).

      John Michael Brace v Information Commissioner & Wirral Metropolitan Borough Council EA/2016/0033

      and

      John Brace v Information Commissioner & Merseyside Fire and Rescue Authority EA/2016/0054

      So you may have the opportunity to watch myself and Wirral Council on opposite sides of a Tribunal hearing in the near future!

      I can’t comment much more than the above on the Wirral Council one as now a hearing date has been set, it’s classed as sub judice and subject to the legislation on contempt of court (which also applies to decisions of the First-Tier Tribunal).

  5. G’day John

    Trust all is well.

    What if anything John has come out of Shanghai, Reno and all their other junkets?

    Ooroo

    James

    1. Hi James,

      Yes all is well, I just took a week off from blogging over the Easter holiday season.

      Didn’t Wirral end up being twinned with Reno?

  6. G’day John

    Their rubbish local propaganda sheet

    Councils ‘spent more than £200m on staff settlements, most with gagging orders’

    So John it just goes to show nothing clever at Wirral just like the rest and people like Wirral “Funny” Bizz

    PIGS IN A TROUGH

    each and every one of them.

    You hear all the blokes in the swimming pool and gym of a morning which department the next tranche of pig swill is coming from.

    OINK OINK OINK

    Ooroo

    James

  7. G’day John

    Will they show any signs of decency tonight?

    I doubt it.

    Ooroo

    James

    IF THEY VOTED TO CLOSE DOWN LYNDALE

    IF THEY VOTED TO CLOSE DOWN GIRTRELL COURT

    IF THEY VOTED TO STAY SCHTUM ON WIRRALGATE

    IF THEY VOTED TO STAY SCHTUM ON WIRRAL “FUNNY” BIZZ

    DON’T VOTE FOR THEM

  8. G’day John “Tarrantino” Brace

    Make my day!

    Tell me Nurse Rat and the gang were not revolting.

    Tell me they are saving Lyndale and Girtrell Court.

    Ooroo

    James

    If not DON’T VOTE FOR ANY OF THEM.

    Anybody can do the evil and immoral things lets have people who do the right, decent and humane thing.

    1. “Tell me they are saving Lyndale and Girtrell Court.”

      Sorry I can’t as they chose not to.

      (This is the sort of brutal honesty which stopped me getting elected as a councillor).

  9. G’day John

    Their local rubbish propaganda sheet

    Wirral Council leader adds voice to campaign to stay in the European Union

    If we go out of Europe will they have to pay back all the money AdderleyDadderleyDooLally said wasn’t ours anyway?

    Would love to see that DCLG Report they are hiding.

    Ooroo

    James

    IF THEY VOTED TO CLOSE DOWN LYNDALE

    IF THEY VOTED TO CLOSE DOWN GIRTRELL COURT

    DON’T VOTE FOR THEM

    Ooroo

    James

    1. Sadly people rarely leak information to me (such as the DCLG report you mention).

      Certain factions within Wirral Council don’t like leaks and get very cross behind the scenes with those who leak and squeak about what’s really going on.

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