About Wrinehill

 Well finally,  I am delighted to report something positive - that Staffordshire County Council Highways Department is getting around to dealing with the constant flooding in Wrinehill . It appears to be carrying out all the repair and remedial work suggested (by the wrongfully defamed Councillor) and the land owner (who was being vilified)  in 2023.   Had action been taken in a timely manner so much inconvenience and damage to the road and verges and personal property  could have been avoided.   It is also amazing and salutary that all the mud was recently cleared by a local resident. This work also highlights the mis/disinformation that was circulating at the time regarding the cause of the flooding and confusing and getting in the way of a remedy - ie it was the fault of the the HS2 project and that it should be the one to take responsibility (and pay for any damage) etc..  That, in my view, was potentially libellous, and certainly rub...

  Recently Betley Parish Council decided to earmark £8000 from it s reserves to cover election expenses.  No election took place in April 2025 to replace one of the councillors.  Two applications were received and one was chosen by the Council as a co-optee to fill the vacancy for  Wrinehill. The rules are about to change with regard to who pays for local elections.  It seems that NBC will now charge parish and smaller councils.   In 2022 the cost of an election was around £350.   Now we are told that it will be £8000 as advised by the NBC.   Perhaps the NBC can give a full account of the costs?   It should also be noted that whilst larger council are capped with regard to the Council Tax, Parish councils are not.  Perhaps this is why the council tax in Betley has steadily risen over the years.  (At one point it was suggested that it rise by 10 percent.)  But then the Minutes can record a lot of information ...

  Re Risk management and internal control: Did you know that: The Parish Council must ensure that it has a sound system of internal control, which delivers effective financial, operational and risk management.   It is unclear if this is the case.   The recent Finance and Audit Committee set up appeared to be unworkable and it is questionable why it was set up at all.   The same could be said for the Planning Committee.       That at least once a year, the Council must review the effectiveness of its system of internal control, before approving the Annual Governance Statement (ie completing the AGAR Form).   This can only be done by the full council not a working party or a committee.   It is not a tick box exercise and the process demands both scrutiny and honesty.    Any accounting control systems determined by the RFO must include measures to:   ensure that risk is appropriately managed; ensure the prompt, accura...

  There is a new consultation circulating by national government re the proposed reorganisation of local government in Staffordshire. Almost each larger council in Staffordshire has put in a proposal with their own and often self interested proposal for residents to consider. There are, therefore, five proposals to comment on, or just the one that you might think is preferable. The deadline is 26 March 2026. All the proposals are interesting - some more than others. The least attractive is possibly the proposal from Newcastle-under-Lyme which suggests business as usual - which is not really an option. Trying to second guess which option will be preferable for Betley will be difficult. Over the years things have changed and not always for the better. The same could be said for Newcastle-under-Lyme town. And what has happened to all the promised funding for the redevelopment of the vacant derelict sites around the town/borough promised by the Council and the (disgraced) forme...

    A long overdue inquiry has been made recently into the workings of local councils and their low standards.   Urgent reform has been urged in order to make the standards framework fairer, stronger and more consistent across all tiers of local government. It has recently been reported by NALC that ‘the  Smaller Authorities Proper Practices Panel  ( SAPPP ) has replaced the JPAG although the AGAR form will still be compulsory (t he Annual Governance and Accountability Return) which local councils have to   complete annually and submit to a reputable auditor.   This stands at the heart of good governance and sound financial management across England's smaller authorities. This is the body that defines what best practice really means, setting the standards that guide thousands of parish and town councils in ensuring transparency, accountability, and integrity in the use of public funds.   Unfortunately, when questioned...

  Section 106 Money Recent articles in national newspapers have highlighted the practice that some local councils have adopted re stock-piling S106 monies.   Newcastle-under-Lyme and Stoke-on- Trent were called to account some years ago for retaining several million pounds rather than spending the money on improving the locality where the development was taking place.   Nationally the practice continues.   More recently it was discovered that Betley Parish Council had not claimed the £47,000 (the commuted sum for the former Bluebell Inn development in Wrinehill.   So it reverted to Newcastle-under-Lyme who have claimed that it was spent elsewhere in the borough.   More recently £11,158 was reserved by Newcastle-under-Lyme to resurface the Betley Village Hall carpark (S106 money from the former garage site development in Wrinehill.)   When the issue was first raised in a Parish council meeting in 2024 it was ignored.   When it was raised a ...