Councillors who sat on the Alsager Partnership Review Panel have recommended that the panel is closed with immediate effect following the abuse they have received.

Members of the review panel were circulated an email by Jackie Weaver, of the Cheshire Association of Local Councils (ChALC), 15 minutes before yesterday's (Monday) 10am meeting commenced.

The Cheshire Association of Local Councils (ChALC) is an independent body serving the needs of Parish and Town Councils (and Parish Meetings) (Local Councils) and representing their interests across Cheshire.

Ms Weaver had a "very brief conversation" with the town clerk, Nicola Clarke, and Cllr Derek Hough and was asked to offer an opinion on the "tensions" that appeared to had "increased" between the review panel and Alsager Partnership.

Nub News reported last week that the future of the Alsager Partnership was up in the air following a meeting which recommended that the partnership received no further funding for this financial year.

At last week's meeting the panel agreed the Alsager Partnership Service Level Agreement, a binding document signed by both parties, remained 'fit for purpose' and that the partnership 'must meet their responsibilities, be accountable and adhere to the agreement'.

Ms Weaver's email stated that the review panel at last week's meeting "somewhat perversely" made the following recommendations to town council:

- To recommend to the town council that no further funding is given to Alsager Partnership for the financial year 2020-21.

- That an action plan and detailed financial information is submitted to the Partnership Panel Review (as per 6.1 of the Service Level Agreement) before a decision is made on funding for 2021-22.

- An additional review panel will be held on 23 November 2020 in order to feed into the budget meeting being held on 1 December 2020.

Ms Weaver added: "This sits a little at odds with the resolution above which clearly states that the SLA remains 'fit for purpose' so resolving to withdraw the remaining funding does not appear to have any formal justification."

In her conclusions, which was labelled a "very brief review of the information presented", Ms Weaver's observations included:

- The partnership SLA is still live and the panel agree that it is.

- The 2021- 2022 a new way of working three sets out the partnership's objectives for the following year and the council will need to consider whether or not they sit with their original stated objectives. On the face they appear to.

- The review panel might benefit from reviewing its Term of Reference (TOR) again as they currently perform the kind of function one might expect from a management committee.

- Their [review panel] financial scrutiny is somewhat more extensive than would have been envisaged for such a panel whose only financial obligation is to ensure that the partnership is financially secure and able to deliver the SLA.

- If the council considers that the partnership is delivering on the objectives and that it is satisfied that it is a financially secure body then clarification of the TOR of the review panel might help reduce tensions between the two bodies.

- The council might consider that it would be content to have the partnership report direct to the council itself or one of its committees.

John Poulson, chair of Alsager Partnership, did not attend yesterday's meeting as he had another meeting to attend at the same time.

Mrs Clarke added: "He did not feel it was necessary to come to this meeting."

Cllr Jane Hearne, who sits on the review panel, responded: "So it isn't important enough."

Speaking on Ms Weaver's comments, Cllr Jo Dale, who also sits on the review panel, said: "They [Alsager Partnership] are not following the SLA, it is really simple. This panel is in an impossible situation, how can we release the funding, which is taxpayer's money, when we have not been given the reports by the partnership, which the SLA says they should give."

Cllr June Buckley, who is the ward councillor representative for Alsager Partnership, felt ChALC's "intervention" might "resolve" a lot of the issues between the two parties.

Cllr Buckley said: "I do feel now, it's almost like you all need an adjudicator."

Cllr Dale responded: "We do not need a referee, we just need to be given the information, which is stated in that legal document between the partnership and the review panel."

Cllr Hough, who is the Alsager Town Council representative for the Alsager Partnership, told the panel that he contacted ChALC because he felt the "poor" situation needed to be "sorted out" and he wanted a "fair independent evaluation".

Cllr Sue Helliwell, chair of the Partnership Review Panel, reiterated that the panel has never wanted the Alsager Partnership to fold and recognised the great work the group of volunteers does for the community.

But the Conservative councillor highlighted that the relationship between the two parties has continued to regress ever since the review panel reduced Alsager Partnership's grant request for this financial year from £36,952 to £31,303.

Cllr Helliwell said: "From that day on this review panel has come under extreme pressure from certain members of the management committee.

"Cllr Dale touched on some of the things that she has had happened to herself, I have been approached by other members of this review panel, who have had not so nice things said to them."

Cllr Hearne felt that the partnership management team had "really let down" the partnership and labelled the way certain members had behaved at the review panel meetings as "atrocious".

Due to those actions, Cllr Hearne proposed that the partnership review panel was closed with immediate effect and added: "Personally, I do not want to be treated like this one day further."

Cllr Dale seconded Cllr Hearne's proposal.

An emotional Cllr Helliwell added: "I would like to thank the review panel for their hard work, for everything you have done, the abuse you have received, I am extremely sorry because it was unacceptable."

Cllr Ron Tyson abstained from the vote because he wanted the panel to continue.

The panel recommended that the partnership review panel ceases with immediate effect and that would have to be passed by Alsager Town Council on 15 December.

Alsager Partnership's grant request for next year will be determined by the town council's next Finance and Policy Committee meeting.

The level of funding the partnership will receive for the remainder of this financial year will be determined at tonight's (Tuesday) town council meeting.