Dance evening pays tribute to pioneer
AN INVESTIGATION into Scarborough Council’s handling of allegations of corruption has found that there was no cover-up, only procedural mistakes.
The authority was forced to pay former employee Ben Marriott £100,000 when he won an unfair dismissal case after he resigned after accusing his bosses of corruption.
Mr Marriott, 65, told his bosses in 2014 that council employees were allegedly having work done on their houses by approved council contractors at favourable rates in exchange for taxpayerfunded contracts.
At an employment tribunal in Hull last year three judges led by Humphrey Forrest ruled the council had failed its employee, effectively leaving him with no choice but to resign from his job at Dean Road Depot, and savaged the authority’s handling of the investigation into his complaints. He also complained about bullying and threats made by staff following his complaints.
An independent report into WEST YORKSHIRE Playhouse is to stage an evening of dance in tribute to Yorkshire-born dance pioneer Nadine Senior.
The founding principal of the Northern School of Contemporary Dance died in January 2016.
Phoenix Dance Theatre and Northern School of Contemporary Dance will join forces for the the way the council investigated the allegations said it found no new information that supported Mr Marriott’s claims.
The 45-page report, which does not feature names of individual officers, does highlight errors and missed opportunities dance tribute event at the Leeds theatre on Sunday, October 8.
Janet Smith, principal of Northern School of Contemporary Dance, said: “I am delighted that Northern School of Contemporary Dance is collaborating with dance partners across the city and artists from the UK, Europe and the US in celebrating with the council’s own investigation into the allegations, which led to Mr Marriott resigning from his position in the authority’s asset and risk management team.
The investigation by Mazars consultants said it set the scope of its own investigation, agreed by council leader Coun Derek Bastiman and Labour leader Coun Steve Siddons, and did not report to any council officers.
Mazars found that although some council officers admitted using council contractors for private work, they were not asked how much they paid for the works or the nature of the work carried out.
The investigators found that one of the most eye-catching claims in the tribunal judgment was not as it seemed. In the judgment, it is claimed a council van was sent to collect a rabbit hutch that an employee had bought on eBay.
Mazars found that the van was not sent as the hutch would have been too large to fit in.
The report concludes by saying Scarborough Council should tighten its whistleblowing policy and consider appointing a whistleblowing officer. the visionary leadership of our founding principal, Nadine Senior, and the continually resounding impact of her work.
“This will be a very special event for us in paying tribute to an extraordinary woman who championed the value of arts education from a young age in achieving the highest aspirations for all.”